Ruin - Book One of the Rending Trilogy
by Kentethalion
Summary: Beacon had always seemed an impenetrable fortress, a light in the dark that couldn't be snuffed. But now, with Vale overrun, their numbers dwindling and enemies snarling at their gates, the remaining students of Beacon Academy must make a final stand, risking everything to protect their home
1. A Foreboding Feeling

A Foreboding Feeling

Ruby breathed in deeply, sighing in contentment from the fresh air that flowed into her lungs. She had always loved this time of year, whenever the weather shifted and started getting colder. It wasn't too cold, and it wasn't too warm, it was just perfect. Her happy sigh quickly became one of annoyance whenever her elder sister spoke up from beside her.

"So, Ruby, who is it? Who iiiiiiiis it?" Yang chirped happily, a wide smile plastered across her face as she poked her sister's shoulder.

Ruby swatted her hand aside. "Cut it out, Yang. I'm not telling you anything, because there's nothing to tell!"

"I don't believe you. You've been gone until so late recently and you've been coming back with this little smile on your face. Not to mention you've just been randomly grinning all the time. Admit it, you totally have a crush on someone."

Ruby felt a blush creeping up her neck and staining her cheeks slightly. "No, sis, I do not." She glanced down at her feet, hoping the color in her face wouldn't give her away. Okay, so she _may _have a somewhat _miniscule_ crush on someone, but Yang did not need to know that.

Yang grabbed Ruby around the waist, lifting her up and twirling her around, laughing, "My baby sister's gotta crush!"

Said baby sister smacked the back of Yang's head and hissed at her to put her down, but Yang ignored her, continuing to spin.

"Will you two cut it out? We're in public, don't you have any sort of self control?"

"Sorry, Weiss," Ruby whined, finally managing to slip from her elder sister's grip.

Weiss huffed, crossing her arms and turning to Yang. "And what about you?"

"Oh, c'mon, Princess, aren't you curious?" Weiss raised an eyebrow in a silent question. "Who Ruby's crushing on, of course!"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "No, I'm not. The only thing I care about is that Ruby," she shot the red-headed girl a sideways look through narrowed eyes, "keeps up with her studies. I won't have her dragging me down over some boy."

The last member of their group, who had been hovering silently in the back, observing the sisters' antics quietly, finally spoke up. "I don't think you'll have to worry about that, Weiss. Ruby's been doing a pretty good job over the past year. There's no reason to believe that's going to change, right?"

Weiss eyed Blake before giving a small sigh. "I suppose you're right." She turned back to the sisters. "You," she said, pointing at Ruby, "had better not lag behind, boy or no. And you," this time she turned to Yang, "behave yourself. We came into the city for a few errands today, but we're still representing Beacon. You should act like it."

Yang immediately stood up straight and threw Weiss a mock salute. "At once, ma'am!" she called, leading Weiss to groan and hide her face in her hand. Ruby giggled and Blake smirked. Yang continued her charade, marching straight-laced down the sidewalk and turning ninety degrees on her heel onto the next street at the corner.

"It's terrifying to think of the kind of headway she'd make if she put that much effort into her work," Weiss muttered. Ruby laughed and jogged to catch up with her sister.

It was a Saturday, and team RWBY had decided to take it easy today, considering they had been running clean-up missions on the weekends recently. Somehow, no matter how many Grimm they seemed to kill off, they always seemed to have refilled their numbers by the next week. Ruby had decided that since they had spent the last three weekends in the Emerald Forest that this one was being reserved for rest and relaxation. So they had decided to journey into Vale proper for some errands and shopping.

They had already been by a few shops, once of which was a weapons store, and Ruby could had spent _days_ just drooling over the displays. She had only needed to buy a few basic cleaning and care supplies, but as soon as she saw the gun with an attached chainsaw blade that could be fired outward and controlled and retracted via a chain attached to the gun, she had gotten caught in a fantasy land.

There she had remained until Blake had shaken her from her dreamy stupor an hour later. The faunus informed her that Yang and Weiss had already left, one out of boredom and one out of impatience. Ruby shook her head. Even thinking of that shop right now was likely to trigger another bout of daydreaming. She had to stay focused. They were on their way to a well known upper-class clothing store. Once they were there, she could let her mind go as much as she liked. They were only going to keep Weiss happy, anyway.

They were only a few blocks from the store whenever they sensed the change. The air suddenly felt colder, and the world seemed to have gotten quieter all of a sudden. Something hung in the air, something that Ruby couldn't quite identify. She looked at her team, and knew from their reactions that she wasn't the only one who was feeling it. Weiss had slowed her walk, and her hand now rested on Myrtenaster's handle. Blake's mouth was a straight line, and her ears were twitching back and forth underneath the bow. Yang's boisterous exterior had fallen away, her face now serious. Her muscles were tensed as she looked from side to side.

Nothing presented itself immediately, but they knew that something was happening, or was about to happen.

"There's no one on the streets," Weiss observed quietly. Ruby looked around, surprised. She hadn't noticed that, and it only helped to confirm the strange feeling that was permeating the atmosphere. Vale was always busy, no matter what time of the day or year it was. Today had been no exception, with people bustling about busily.

"Where did they all go?" She wondered aloud. Ruby didn't like this. Not one bit. "Weapons out, guys. Whatever's going on, it doesn't seem like it's any good." She reached back and removed Crescent Rose from its place on her belt, deploying it into its sniper form. She slid back the bolt, chambering a round.

Blake slid Gambol Shroud from her back as Weiss pulled her rapier from her belt, holding it loosely to her side, ready to pull it into position at a moment's notice. Ember Cecilia deployed on Yang's wrist, the plates sliding back and loading up the shells within.

"We're heading back to Beacon. Something's going on. Yang, in front. Anything comes at us, obliterate it," Ruby ordered quietly. Yang smirked, moving to the lead position of the group. "Blake, to the back. Eyes and ears open. You'll hear them coming before we do." Blake nodded, slowing her pace until she trailed behind everyone. "Weiss, with me. Alright, guys, let's move." The four girls set off in the opposite direction they had been going, their goal now the shining green lights high atop the coastal cliffs.

As they moved, Weiss observed her partner out of the corner of her eyes. Ruby was tense, ready to react to anything that may happen. She had truly grown in the year they had been with Beacon, much to Weiss' surprise. And not just in the sense that she had gotten taller either. The heiress had always known that Ruby had a vast amount of potential in her, but she was demonstrating that she had more than even Weiss had suspected. The younger girl had managed to finish in the top ten their first year.

She still had that streak of immaturity, but she had learned to haul it back during combat and other serious situations. The fact that she had become such a fantastic leader definitely had something to do with that, Weiss felt. Ruby was brilliant at utilizing her team's individual skills to adapt and deal with any problem they encountered. It had been the reason team RWBY came out on top at the Vytal Festival's combat tournament last year. Aside from them all being undoubtedly strong and holding their own in the individual matches, under Ruby's leadership, they had dominated the team melee. They became the first team in over two decades, only the second in the festival's history, to win the fight with all team members still standing.

Weiss was pulled from her thoughts whenever Blake rested a hand on Ruby's shoulder, inclining her head back and to the right, at an alley across the street. Ruby nodded, giving Weiss a look before gently prodding Yang in the back to get her attention. The brawler looked back as Weiss laid her hand on her rapier, giving the Dust chamber a spin to make sure it was operating smoothly. Yang, upon seeing the signs Ruby and Blake were giving her, broke into a smile before cracking her knuckles.

She then pointed to herself and held up one finger. Ruby looked at her, exasperated, before waving her off with a weary nod. Yang double fist-pumped victoriously, cocking her gauntlets as she did so. She then promptly threw two punches in the direction of the alley Blake had indicated, Ember Cecilia firing with two _bangs_ as she did so. The small projectiles shot forward, crashing into the mouth of the alley and exploding outward, throwing debris into the deserted street.

From the darkened passage came a howl of anger, and team RWBY froze. That had _not_ been a human sound. Suddenly, Blake tensed, widening her stance and separating Gambol Shroud from its sheath. She held both blades at the ready. Ruby looked at her worriedly, and noticed that her bow was jittering about like a moth before a flame. Her ears must have been twitching every which direction.

"We're surrounded," Blake muttered.

Ruby spun her weapon, unfolding it into scythe from as she did so. Weiss pulled Myrtenaster up and across her chest, holding it in the attack ready position. Yang just smiled all the wider, reloading Ember Cecilia with a satisfying _cha-chick._

"Love when we're surrounded," she commented happily.

"Even when we can't see the enemy?" Weiss asked through gritted teeth. Something about this situation was so wrong. They were in the middle of Vale, what was going on? And that howl…

"Of course, princess, it just makes the fight slightly more fair."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Focus, Yang." She turned to Blake. "How many are there?"

"I can hear about fifteen, I think. There in the alleys and on the rooftops." Ruby glanced upward, but Blake continued, bringing her attention back to her. "But, Ruby, they're not human. They're _Grimm._"

Ruby opened her mouth to ask how the hell there were Grimm in the middle of Vale, but was interrupted by a snarl as a shadow burst from the smoke of the original alley. Ruby turned and, without batting an eyelash, pulled the trigger on Crescent Rose. The bullet blew off half of the Beowolf's skull, and the remainder of the corpse tumbled to the ground mid-run.

And like that, they were everywhere. Beowolves dropped from the rooftops and out of the alleys around them. Ruby even spotted an Ursa lumbering up the street toward them. The ones coming from above never made it to the ground as Yang launched herself up to meet them, followed quickly by Blake.

Yang slammed her fist into the first one she encountered, firing off a blast as she did so. The Beowolf howled in agony as the attack tore a hole clean through its body. The blonde then grabbed the dying creature and flipped their positions, so that the Beowolf was the one closest to the ground. She planted both her feet on the Grimm and launched off of it, sending it toward the ground. It got halfway there before Blake slashed it to ribbons.

She saw another Beowolf about to jump off the roof toward her. _Perfect. Two birds, one stone._ Blake switched Gambol Shroud to pistol mode and threw it at the Grimm. The monster tried to dodge backward, but far too late. The blade pierced its neck, and Blake yanked on the ribbon, pulling herself up above it. She flicked the ribbon again, this time causing her gun to fire, decapitating the beast. The bullet struck another falling Grimm through the head, killing it instantly. Blake smirked. _Three birds are better than two._

She landed on the roof and turned to watch her partner launch herself into another enemy, crushing it against the building it had jumped off of. Yang managed to land three or four hits, effectively silencing the monster, whenever another one fell past her, clearly intent upon attacking her sister and her partner. Yang grit her teeth, firing both of her gauntlets at the sky, sending her hurtling downward after it.

The Beowolf landed, and turned to Ruby, raising its claws to attack. Ruby knew it was there, but she didn't even bother to turn around. It wouldn't be a problem in a second. Sure enough, before the Grimm's claws could even get close to her, Ruby felt a large impact that vibrated up her legs into her skull. She glanced over her shoulder, and almost felt bad for the Beowolf. Yang was lying on the ground beside the still-twitching body, her elbow resting squarely in the middle of a small crater where the Grimm's head used to be.

Ruby turned back to her fight. She took two running steps forward and then fired Crescent Rose, giving herself a massive speed boost. The Ursa had not been expecting to find her in front of it so quickly, and it reared back in surprise. Ruby fired at the ground, lifting herself above the Ursa, before cocking and firing again, bringing her spinning back down. She cleaved straight through the bear's neck, and barely even landed before she fired again, sending herself flying toward a group of Beowolves trying to get behind Weiss.

She cut them to pieces in a tornado of slashes as her partner sent forth a wave of ice spikes, impaling several more of the creatures. One of them dodged the attack, but didn't last very long as Weiss glided forward and pierced it through the center of its chest. Ruby's eyes darted around as Weiss returned to stand by her side, rapier still at the ready. Yang stood, brushed herself off and joined the pair.

"Well that was easy," she commented with that ever-present smile on her face.

"Well I should hope so," Weiss replied, brushing her hair over her shoulder.

"Keep you guards up, everyone," Ruby ordered. "I don't know how Grimm got into the city, but I'm willing to bet there are more of them."

Blake landed beside her partner. "The roofs in the immediate vicinity are clear, but I heard group of enemies all over. And look," she pointed over some buildings, and the group turned to look. There were plumes of smoke rising lazily over the skyline.

The girls looked at each other in contemplative silence for a minute before Yang voiced the thought that was on all of their minds.

"What the _hell_ is going on?"

* * *

**A/N: **Hello everyone! So what did you think?

This is my first RWBY fic, and I'm really happy to be contributing to the fandom. I've been watching the show since the second episode, and I fucking love it. The instant this idea popped into my head, I decided I had to write it out. I have outlined the stories of all three books in this trilogy, so there won't be any random meandering about, and hopefully I'll be able to keep up a swift and regular update schedule.

Anyway, please read and review guys!


	2. Two Fronts

**A/N: **Hello, again, everyone! First off, I'd like to say thank you to all of you who reviewed, favorited, and alerted this story. You guys rock!

Second, something I forgot to mention in the first chapter. I've chosen one song from the RWBY soundtrack to sort of be the 'theme' for each of the stories in the trilogy. This one's is "I May Fall"

Anyway, here's the second chapter, guys, so enjoy!

* * *

Two Fronts

The four girls sprinted through the streets of Vale as fast their legs would carry them. Things were looking bleaker and bleaker every block they progressed. While the area of their initial encounter had been miraculously clear of civilians, the rest of the city was unfortunately not. Citizens of Vale were running around every which way, confused and panicked. Screams tore through the air every second, and sobs could be heard around every corner.

Team RWBY did what they could. They killed any Grimm out in the open that they could find, and escorted any civilians indoors as quickly as possible. For some reason, the monsters didn't seem too intent to on hunting down anyone inside, so for now it was the best they could manage. All the while, their questions just grew and grew. That didn't hold a candle to the confusion caused by their next discovery.

They had just finished off a small pack of Ursi that had been tormenting a small group of children. Ruby and Yang tore the beasts to pieces while Weiss and Blake led the children inside a nearby restaurant. When the fight was finished and the children safe, team RWBY took a moment to collect themselves on a nearby rooftop.

Ruby planted Crescent Rose in concrete, letting out a small huff of breath as she did so. Yang promptly flopped into a sitting position, legs crossed in front of her. Blake and Weiss both chose to sit on the small, waist-high wall that ran the perimeter of the roof.

"Okay, but seriously, what the _actual_ hell is going on?" Yang asked.

Weiss shook her head. "More to the point, how did Grimm get inside the city? And so many of them?"

Ruby looked out over the tops of the buildings that fell away in the distance before her. She could hear the cries of panic and fear, and smoke clogged the sky in several different locations across the city. Weiss definitely had the right of it. How many had they killed, and yet they had only covered a small portion of the city, barely a scratch in the surface. Ruby's grip on her weapon tightened. The screams were piercing her ears, people crying for help. She wanted to run to them, to all of them. To purge the darkness that was consuming them. She was a Huntress! That's what she was supposed to do. And yet…

"We can't save everyone," Blake said calmly, voicing her leaders own thoughts. Ruby turned, and silver locked with amber.

A sigh of frustration left the younger girl's lips. "I know, it's just…ugh! I wish we could do more."

"We're doing everything we can, sis."

"Maybe we shouldn't go back to Beacon. Maybe we should stay here, try and help them."

"No," Weiss stepped forward, laying a hand on her partner's shoulder. "We _need_ to return to Beacon. We need to coordinate and organize. If we go charging blindly into this mess, we could just be making everything worse. The Vale Police Force will do what they can, and the Grimm are largely ignoring the citizens who've made it indoors. Soon enough there won't be anybody left on the streets." She didn't bother to add that that was because many of the people would never make it inside. They all knew. "The most we can do for them is to return to Beacon, gather reinforcements, and come back with a plan."

Ruby nodded, though it left a sour taste in her mouth. Weiss squeezed her shoulder; she could see how much distress this decision was causing Ruby.

"The rest of us don't like it either, sis," Yang commented, throwing her arm around her sister's shoulders, "but it's what we gotta do."

Ruby closed her eyes, let out a breath of air, and opened them again. "Alright. Let's go. Blake, I want you in front this time-" Ruby stopped speaking whenever she noticed the look on Blake's face though. Her ears were swiveled to the left, and her eyes were wide.

Yang quickly moved to her partner, gripping her shoulders while asking, "What is it, Blake?"

Blake looked up into her violet eyes, her look confused. "There's…men, in that alley down there."

Ruby yanked Crescent Rose from the ground, cocked it, and laid it in position behind her. "How many? Are they being attacked?" Blake shook her head. "Alright, where's the closest place we can-"

"No, Ruby! You don't understand!" Blake cut her off. "They're not _under_ attack, they're _part_ of the attack."

Their leader froze, confusion written all over her face. "Wh…What do you mean?"

Blake tilted her head, listening. "They're…discussing the attack on Vale, and working with the Grimm."

Weiss bristled. "They are _humans_ involved in this?!"

"They're saying something about Beacon-"

"Oh fuck this," Yang spat. She ran at the edge of the building. "I'm getting my answers directly." She promptly vaulted over the edge, disappearing from view.

The rest of the team wasted no time in following. Ruby fired her weapon, flinging herself into the air off the side Weiss and Blake leaped over simultaneously. Blake jumped from wall to wall to descend the narrow canyon between the neighboring structures, and Weiss used her glyphs. By the time they reached the three men, one was slumped against a brick wall, another was cowering into a dumpster, and the last was being held in the air by one very angry Yang Xiao Long. They all wore black suits with red ties, and the one still standing had on the tell-tale sunglasses of Junior Xiong's men.

"You better start talking," Yang growled at him, fire beginning to lick at the fringes of her hair. "Or your groin's going to become intimately acquainted with my gauntlets." She threateningly loaded one, the sound unusually loud in the confined space.

The man let out a small squeak of terror. It was around that time when the goon who had been leaning petrified against the dumpster decided to move. He shakily pulled out his gun, aiming it at the back of the blond mane of the hair. His finger rested on the trigger, and he started to squeeze whenever he heard something crash heavily onto the dumpster behind him, and another something, this one cold and undeniably sharp, pressed against his neck, pulling up towards his chin.

"Oh, now, I wouldn't do that if I were you," a voice chirped from behind and above him. He inclined his head back to see young girl dressed in black and red, holding an impossibly large scythe against his neck. She smiled at him. "Yang just _hates_ to be interrupted when she's working." The gun clattered from his grip as he held up his hands. Silver eyes glinted at him. "Good choice."

Yang tightened her grip on her victim's collar, lifting him another few inches. "_Talk._"

"Okay! Okay!" he cried. Yang released him, and he crashed to the ground, his back against the wall. The three girls crowded around him; Ruby stayed in her position to be sure the man's accomplice didn't try anything. "We're…" he swallowed. "We're on loan to Roman Torchwick. Apparently he cut a huge deal with the boss. We're supposed to take the city and suppress the police force. Nobody told us we'd be working with those fucking _monsters_ though," he grumbled.

"Why would Roman want to take Vale?" Blake questioned, her eyes narrowed.

"I don't know." Suddenly, Yang's foot was in between the man's legs and pressing hard. "I really don't know," he squeaked. Yang let off the pressure a bit. "All I know is what we were told. We're supposed to secure the city with Roman, while that other bitch takes the Grimm and goes after Beacon." The goon promptly shivered as the temperature in the alley plummeted. Each of the girls' faces were frozen in an emotion somewhere unadulterated rage and unnerving serenity.

"They're going after Beacon?" Weiss said quietly. The man nodded dumbly, and opened his mouth to speak.

He never got the chance, as the bottom of Yang's boot promptly made contact with his face, crunching his skull into the brick and mortar behind him. He slumped over, entirely unconscious. Team RWBY turned to their leader, who was just finishing cracking her victim on the top of his head with the back of her scythe. His eyes rolled back, and he fell to the ground.

"Slight change of plans." Her voice was steady and strong, but there was an angry edge to it, a promise of pain that her team had rarely heard her use. "We make _straight _for Beacon _now_. No more distractions. Anything that gets in our way is a target. Clear?"

The other three nodded, and Ruby turned to the entrance out to the street. She put her scythe behind her and chambered a fresh round before pulling the trigger. She went blasting out into the daylight, her team close behind her. They sped away over the rooftops, Ruby and Yang keeping themselves aloft and moving quickly with their respective weapons. Weiss was using her glyphs and a bit of gravity manipulation to keep up with them, while Blake jumped along on the glyphs behind her.

Ruby's eyes were locked on the shimmering green lights that heralded Beacon Academy, her home. She had a terrible, gnawing sense of dread festering in her stomach that everything was only going to get worse. With that thought in mind, she fired Crescent Rose again, accelerating as much as she dared if she wanted to stay near her team. One desperate thought repeated itself in her mind. _Please let Beacon still be there when we arrive._

* * *

Lie Ren stretched his arms above his head, relishing the relaxing feel of his muscles pulling, and leaned back against the tree trunk. It was a Saturday, and that meant team JNPR had the day off. He was not complaining. Jaune had been running them pretty ragged lately, between constant skirmishes and combat practice with other teams, primarily their sister team, RWBY. Ren swore that if he had to be on the receiving end of one more of Yang's fiery punches he was going to toss Jaune into the _sun_.

No matter how displeased he may have been trying to convince himself he was though, Ren was secretly happy with how seriously Jaune had begun taking his leadership. At first, he had had his doubts about the blond. He had been a clumsy, unskilled mess of a Hunter-in-training. But after his little stint with Cardin, the young man had shaped up. He had begun paying attention in class, and had been putting every hour he possibly could into combat training. Those sessions were normally run by Pyrrha, though Jaune had asked his other teammates for help and pointers as well.

As he watched his leader spar with his red-headed partner a short distance away, Ren had to admit that the effects were definitely showing. Jaune was doing better and better with each session, with not dying at least. Seriously, although his offensive capabilities were severely lacking still, he was damn near impossible to knock down anymore. His guarding was slowly becoming impeccable, and with his enormous quantity of Aura, he was a defensive powerhouse.

_Guess that doesn't matter much against Pyrrha though_. A wry smile graced his face as he watched Pyrrha hook a hand on the back of Jaune's armor and plant a foot behind his legs, pulling him to the ground, where she promptly stuck her spear in his face. She relaxed a moment later, offering the young man a hand up. As she pulled him to his feet, it looked as though she was explaining some things to him. What was wrong with his stance (again) if her hand motions were anything to go by.

Ren heard a rustle, and suddenly his view of his teammates was blocked a widely smiling face. Though considering it was upside down, it looked like a gigantic frown.

"Reeeeeeeeeen!" Nora called at him, hanging from a low branch.

Ren closed his eyes, trying to ignore the ringing in his ears she had given him. "Hello, Nora."

The ginger girl slipped from the tree, flipping over in the air and landing in a crouch, before springing to her feet and turning to her partner with sparkling turquoise eyes. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Enjoying my day off."

Nora giggled. "You're so lazy, Ren." Ren remained silent. He had found that conversations with Nora required very little input from his side. "You should be over there with Jaune, getting your ass kicked."

"Think I'll pass."

She shrugged. "Your loss." With a shrug, she bounced away toward the sparring couple. "Ohhhh Jaaaaaaaune," Nora sang as she approached them. Jaune turned, and the blood drained away from his face whenever he saw who it was. She pulled Magnhild from her back, the hammer glinting in the sunlight as it unfolded. Jaune turned to Pyrrha with a pleading look on his, face, but she was too busy chuckling into her hand to help him.

Nora skipped up to him and promptly tried to bash his face in. Jaune stumbled backward and started running around with the most panicked look on his face, begging the cackling Nora to stop. _So much for our fearless leader_. Pyrrha was doubled over now, laughing so hard Ren could see tears in her eyes. He let a small smile pull his lips upward. He leaned his head back against the tree and closed his eyes, relishing the rough feel of the bark against his back and the cool breeze across his face as the _booms_ of Nora's weapon resonated through his skull.

Ren had decided when he woke up that today was going to be strictly relaxation. Between combat training with the team and his classes getting more and more difficult and stressful, he really needed a day off. Though, he supposed that a few of his classes weren't _all_ that bad. Well…moreso one in particular.

Advanced Weaponry was a class Ren had not expected to enjoy quite so much. He had initially signed up for it for two reasons. One, he really did like learning about weapons, and he was always looking for ways to improve his own or his handling of them. Two, nobody else in team JNPR had signed up for it, which gave him at least one class to be by himself; at least a few hours a week away from the lovably hyperactive headache that was his team. He loved them, but they drove him up a wall sometimes.

And now here he was, finding himself actually looking forward to the class. If he was being honest with himself, a trait he liked to believe he exemplified, the reason he was so interested wasn't because of the content or the awesome side projects, it was because of a certain person in the class. One who had a distinct habit of wearing a crimson cloak about. Ren grinned as he recalled their most recent late-night study session. Though calling it a study session seemed a bit incorrect. They barely actually studied, spending far more time just talking and getting to know each other. It was...nice, and Ren felt his smile stretch a little wider.

A loud, booming sound interrupted his thoughts. His eyes snapped open. He had spent many years around Nora and her weapon. He knew exactly what it sounded like, and that was most certainly _not _Magnhild. Then the first scream reached his ears, and he was one his feet, bolting out from under the tree.

_Where?_ It was his only thought. What, who, and why could be figured out later.

His team had reacted as well, looking for the source of the scream. It presented itself soon thereafter. The main gate of Beacon, which had been open, as it normally was on weekends, was clouded with dust, but Ren could see dark shapes moving within. He sprinted forward. A young man burst from the smoke, coughing wildly, wide panicked eyes streaming tears, brown hair in complete disarray. _Probably a first year._

What followed him out of the dust left Ren at a loss, something he had only experienced in his younger interactions with Nora. A Beowulf burst from the murk behind the freshman, mid-leap. Its jaw were open wide, intent upon finishing its prey before it could get away. It never got the chance, though, as Pyrrha's spear violently lodged itself in the beast's side. She pulled the spear back to her hand with her semblance as the body dissipated.

Ren reached the edge of the dust cloud and, after taking a deep breath, gave out a short blast of Aura. The smog blew away, and team JNPR's eyes widened in surprise and horror at what they saw. Grimm were attacking students everywhere. And more and more were pouring in through the main gates. The students had been completely unprepared, and the attack was devastating them. Many had left their weapons behind in their dorms; it was a Saturday, there were no classes or combat training scheduled. Others never even had a chance to draw theirs. Bodies already littered the ground sporadically, and wails of pain tore through the air as more of their classmates fell victim to the Grimm.

"Ren, Nora." Jaune seemed to have snapped out of his stunned daze. His face was now hardened and serious in a way Ren had never seen before. "You two need to shut the gates. If we want to have any hope of holding them off, we need to close the entrance." Ren nodded and flicked his arms, causing StormFlower to spring into his hands. Nora transformed her weapon back into its grenade launcher form, firing a few rounds at an incoming Ursa. The monster was blown backwards off its feet; Nora grinned triumphantly. "Pyrrha and I are gonna stay here, start trying to push them back. Go!"

Ren and Nora took off running. Jaune turned back to the chaos before him, his resolve wavering slightly. This was like nothing they had ever faced before. He felt a reassuring hand on his shoulder and looked to his partner, who gave him a small smile and comforting nod. Jaune took a deep breath, and steeled himself. This is what he had been training for. He raised his sword and shield.

"Let's go!"

* * *

**A/N:** So, what'd we think? I wasn't terribly impressed with it myself but I definitely liked some parts of it. writing team JNPR is fun ^_^

In case it wasn't apparent, language at times will get a little coarse. That's primarily going to be coming from Yang, just 'cause I can totally see a slightly older Yang swearing up a storm whenever she gets pissed

As far as the trilogy goes, this first book is going to be the shortest of the three, and it's the least fleshed out one that I have in the outline I wrote. Its primary purpose is for setting up the other two books. Anyway, that's all for now guys, I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

And, as always, please review review review! (seriously, I fucking **LOVE** reviews)


	3. The First Battle

**A/N:** Hey guys, I'm back with chapter three! I wanted to upload this a few days earlier than I did, but I got way too fucking busy, unfortunately. Even so, here it is!

* * *

The First Battle

_Faster._ It was the only thought that consumed Ruby's mind. _Faster. Faster!_ She fired shot after shot behind her, quickly becoming a red streak across the sky. Her friends, her comrades, her _home_ was in danger. She had to reach it before it was too late. The wind began to tear at her face. _Faster!_

"Ruby!" Weiss' voice yanked her from her thoughts. She glanced back over her shoulder, eyes widening slightly in surprise at just how far ahead of the remainder of her team she had pulled. Ruby spun Crescent Rose so that it faced in front of her and pulled the trigger once, cutting her speed back to match that of her team.

"I'm sorry," she began once she was in line with them again. "I didn't realize how fast I was going."

Weiss shook her head as she propelled herself off of another glyph, Blake close behind. "You dunce. Still as eager as ever to rush headlong into battle."

"I just wanted to get to Beacon as fast as I could. We don't know what kinda situation they're in over there."

Blake spoke calmly, her tone as level as always, "Calm down, Ruby. We're all anxious, but we need to stick together."

"I know, I know...god I suck as leader today."

"You're just really anxious," Yang brushed off her concern while blasting herself forward with Ember Cecilia. "It's a situation we've never faced before. At any rate, I'm sure Beacon can handle itself fine without us for a bit longer. It _is_ the top combat school in all of Remnant, after all," she added with a cheeky smile.

Ruby almost smirked, but she couldn't. "But the professors aren't there, Yang. Ozpin took nearly all of them to that conference in Vacuo, remember?"

Yang's eyes narrowed slightly. She _had_ forgotten that, actually. "Well, whatever, the students will hold their own, at any rate. Besides, there are still a few professors left, right? Port's still there. That old geezer seems like he could put up a hell of a fight."

"Yang!" Weiss admonished. "Professor Port is a veteran Hunter, not to mention one of our mentors. Show some respect!"

Yang rolled her eyes. "I'll show him some respect when he stops winking at me and making that weird noise with his mouth every time he sees me."

Weiss opened her mouth to retort but was cut off by their leader. "Guys, not really the time for this." Her partner's mouth closed, and Yang grinned. She wasn't adverse to taking a victory that she didn't technically earn.

"Ruby has a point though," Blake said, drawing the team's attention. "The professors are away." Yang was familiar enough with her partner by this point to know that Blake wasn't finished, so she wisely kept her mouth shut, despite her burning desire to say 'duh'. Blake continued, "Doesn't the timing of this attack seem a little too convenient? It just so happens to fall on the one Saturday that many of the teachers, not to mention the headmaster, are away from the school."

Ruby bit her lip, feeling the fist of apprehension in her chest clenching that much harder around her lungs.

Weiss looked like she was trying her hardest to deny the reality of Blake's statement. "I'm...I'm sure it's just a coincidence." She certainly didn't sound sure, though, and a silence took hold of the four girls. Ruby looked ahead, squinting her eyes, hoping against hope that she could see something of Beacon, of what was going on.

She couldn't find anything familiar though. There was a giant smoke cloud in the distance that was blocking her view. It wasn't until she noticed just how close to the cliffs it was, and how it choked out of the light of Beacon's tower that she realized the obscuration _was_ Beacon. She made a small cry of despair, and her team followed her gaze. Weiss cursed softly while Blake's eyes narrowed.

Yang grit her teeth, the smile from before long gone. "Those bastards," she seethed. Her hair began to burn and she launched herself forward faster than before. The rest of Team RWBY followed suit, doubling their speed to try and reach their school faster. It was in trouble, and they were going to do their damnedest to defend it.

* * *

The battle, Ren mused to himself, was not going well for them. The Grimm had come on too fast, taken them too much by surprise. The students were too slow to react to the threat. Bleeding, broken human bodies lay scattered about the grounds. At this rate, Beacon would fall within the hour.

Ren was ripped from his reflecting as a clawed hand swiped a few inches in front of his face. He jerked back, startled. _Get ahold of yourself. This is no time to be daydreaming._ He fired a short burst from each of his pistols into the offending Beowulf's eyes, causing it to snarl in pain as it raised its arms to guard against his weapons. Ren took one large step inside the Grimm's guard, crouching low. He brought both his arms upwards, slashing clean through each of the Beowolf's shoulders. The clawed arms fell to the ground, already beginning to dissipate. Before the monster could react in defense, say, biting Ren's face off, Ren reversed his hands direction, bringing them back down across the wolf's torso in an 'x' shape.

The Grimm's growl turned into a death whimper as it collapsed to the ground in multiple pieces. Ren barely spared it a glance before plunging right back into the fight by leaping up and implanting both of his blades into the back of an Ursa's neck. It let loose a roar of protest, twisting violently from side-to-side, trying to reach the young Hunter with its paws and, when that failed, to dislodge him. It lifted its head to glare at him with a glowing red eye.

Its mistake. Ren pulled both triggers on his weapons. Stormflower may not have been the strongest weapon when it came to firepower. That went to either Ruby's Crescent Rose or Nora's Magnhild. However, at point blank, in a constant, focused stream, it didn't matter what type of defenses the Grimm had. The Aura-infused bullets vaporized dark flesh as if it were tissue paper, and the Ursa suddenly found it had two new holes to breath from in the front of its throat. It gurgled before falling forward onto its face. Ren rode it down, somersaulting off of it whenever it hit the dirt.

He almost smirked at his hypocrisy, recalling a time when Nora had done something very similar, and he had asked her to never ever do so again. A loud boom rang in his ears and flash of light out of the corner of his eyes caught his attention. _Speaking of which._ He turned to see his partner beset upon by a small group of Beowolves, four in all. She had just caught one up under the chin with Magnhild, blowing its head clean off.

Its corpse was still flying lifelessly through the air as the other Grimm approached her. Nora spun, smiling widely, at the first one that pounced. She slammed her hammer into its sternum, crushing the life from it instantaneously. One of its packmates must have thought this would be a grand opportunity to try and get the lightning warrior from behind, because it tried to do just that.

Ren saw what was going to happen before it did. Nora pulled the trigger, firing her weapon, and launching it in the opposite direction of the swing that had killed the first Beowolf. The spiked end of the hammer came flying back around in a semi-circle, burying itself in the Grimm's eye socket with a _crunch_ so loud that Ren nearly winced. The fourth Beowolf suddenly seemed to realize that if it stuck around, it was going to meet the same fate as its brethren. It turned tail and tried to flee.

This time, Ren actually did let a small smile sneak onto his face. He had learned, in his many years of being beside Nora on a rampage, that you never, _ever_, ran away from the hot-blooded woman. Nora transformed Magnhild back into a grenade launcher and fired three shots with a cackle. The first one exploded at the fleeing enemy's feet, tripping it up. The second sent it tumbling into the air. And the third, though Ren would never understand how Nora could predict her grenades' effects this well, sailed right into the Beowolf's open mouth as it flew through the air. There was loud, too brightly colored explosion, and the Grimm's legs crashed to the ground. _Only_ its legs.

His partner glanced over at him and smiled, tilting her head. Ren nodded, before turning his attention back toward the gates. Still quite a distance away. At this rate, they would never make it there in time to make any sort of difference. He looked back over his shoulder to the second half of his team, and took heart in the fact that they seemed to be faring alright. Better than alright, in fact. Jaune and Pyrrha seemed to be an unstoppable force at the moment, moving precisely through the battlefield, dispatching whatever enemies were near them along the way.

Ren marveled at their teamwork. They would block with their shields for each other while the other one came around or under the opponent's guard and finished them. They continued swiftly through the chaos like this, making beelines for any and every student they could find, especially the ones who were in trouble. Ren watched as they reached a pair of female third years that he vaguely recalled having been in a class with. Pyrrha beheaded the Beowolf that was harassing them and switched Miló into its rifle form, laying down a field of covering fire for her partner. Jaune helped the girls to their feet, tearing off a strip of his shirt to give to the one to staunch the bleeding from a gash on her arm. Ren couldn't hear what was being said from this distance, but he guessed Jaune was asking if they were alright.

A Beowolf came barreling toward Ren, causing him to leap back, his attention drawn from his leader. He flipped over the Grimm as it rushed under him, striking with a single palm thrust into the back of its neck as it did so. He forced a small burst of Aura through his hand, and the wolf's neck vanished entirely. He landed, crouching immediately to dodge the claws of another Beowolf. He extended his leg and spun, knocking the beast's feet out from under it. As it fell, Ren straightened, spun, and rammed the blades from his pistols into its chest.

His eyes darted from side to side, and upon realizing he was in no immediate danger, cast a glance back to Jaune and Pyrrha. What he saw surprised him. Somehow, in that minute he had been distracted, Jaune had managed to gather together a sizeable group of students, all of whom looked beaten and bloodied, but had a look of fire in their eyes as they focused on whatever Jaune was saying. The blond boy motioned with his sword, and said something fiercely. All of the students whipped out weapons and gave a yell before flying back into the fray.

This time, though, they had a plan. they were organized and they were supporting each other. They held their own against the Grimm, even managing to push back the beasts a little. Ren shook his head with a wry smile. Seriously, his friend was becoming one _hell_ one a leader. He had managed to take a battered group of terrified teenagers and turn them into a effective fighting unit.

Now it was his turn. He turned, his worries for his teammates assuaged, narrowing his eyes at the large, metal doors hanging wide open across the field. He couldn't slog his way through the battlefield. That wasn't going to cut it anymore. Jaune may have rallied the students, but there was no way they could hold off an unrelenting, fullscale assault with a ragtag group of fighters for very long. They needed to close those gates _now_. Ren began running through a list of possibilities in his mind, before he settled on one that he knew he was going to regret. Yet it seemed to be the only choice.

Just as he made up his mind, he felt a presence sidle up behind him and a back pressed against his. He smiled lightly. Somehow she was always knew when he needed her.

"Nora..."

She glanced back over her shoulder at him with a cheeky grin, turquoise eyes sparkling with glee. "Operation Ren-Cannon?"

He sighed and closed his eyes before nodded weakly. He couldn't believe he was about to do this. "Operation Ren-Cannon."

Nora let out a whoop of victory and spun her weapon, converting it into its hammer version. She held it out horizontally and pulled the trigger, sending the back of the head arcing toward Ren, who jumped into the air and angled his legs back toward his partner. As he felt the soles of his feet come into contact with Magnhild's metal surface, he crouched, hunkering down like a coiled spring on the end of the hammer. Nora, with a final laugh, pulled the trigger once again, Ren extended his legs at the same time, letting Aura blast through his lower boy as he did so. This, combined with the sheer force of Nora's swing, sent him hurtling over the battlefield as little more than a streak of green.

As he neared the left gate, he extended his arms, gritting his teeth at the pain he was sure would follow. His pistol blades hooked around one of the bars on the top half of the gate. Despite the Aura he had reinforced his muscles with, the abrupt halt to his momentum nearly tore his shoulders from their sockets. He let out hiss, but managed to maintain his grip on his weapons. Although slowed, he continued to fly forward, pulling the gate shut behind him. It slammed closed with a hollow, reverberating _gong_. Ren swung himself up and onto the top of it.

His feet had barely touched the dark grey metal before he was dashing forward and leaping into the air toward the other gate. He somersaulted in the air, extended his one leg over his head as he reached the other side of Beacon's entrance. He pushed a large quantity of his remaining Aura into his foot, and brought his heel down onto the door with as much force as he could muster. The impact left a small crater in the metal, and the giant slab of metal swung shut, and the magnetic seals activated, locking the entrance closed. Ren thought he saw a dark shape dart through the opening between gates right before they closed, but he couldn't be sure.

He dropped the thirty feet to the earth. His feet hit the ground and he stumbled a bit, collapsing to one knee. His breathing was heavy and his vision was swimming slightly. His shoulders and foot were screaming in pain. _I used too much Aura too quickly._ He tried to stand, but ended up on his hands and knees again, panting as sweat dripped from his face. _Need to get up, help everyone finish this battle. I can rest afterward._ Ren looked up through half-lidded eyes at the battle, noting with surprise how much better things seemed to be going now.

Jaune was yelling commands at the students, who were swiftly putting down groups of Grimm under his direction. Ren also noticed that the few professors who had remained at Beacon had joined the fray. Professor Port was wielding his blunder-axe with an agility that belied his age. He watched as the portly man cleaved straight through two Beowolves with one swing, then spun his weapon and delivered a point blank blast from the shotgun end into the underside of an Ursa's chin. Its white-masked face evaporated and its body lumbered lifelessly to the dirt.

There was a white and green blur that seemed to move endlessly through the fight, never stopping. Ren guessed that it was Oobleck, though he couldn't get a very clear view, so he couldn't be sure. Whoever it was, everytime they passed an opponent, the creature would suddenly sprout a few new holes and gashes over its entire body. The blur passed by Professor Peach, and Ren felt his eyes widen slightly. He had never pictured the platinum-blond haired teacher as much of a fighter, but there she was, face full of concentration and ice-blue eyes narrowed in anger.

She wielded some sort of staff that's upper half was thicker than its lower half. She smacked back a few enemies, and fired off a shot from the gun that must have been hidden in the middle of the shaft. It wasn't the only thing her weapon was hiding though. Professor Peach twisted the lower half of the staff, and suddenly the top half opened up into four separate arms, each with two joints and three sections. _It's like it has fingers._ Suddenly the arms of the weapon began twisting and firing in every direction. _...Fingers that have guns for tips._ Ren had no idea how she could control all sections and the guns within them separately, but she was, and she was raising complete _hell_ on the Grimm around her.

"Ren!" a panicked cry reached his ears, and he turned to see his partner sprinting toward him.

He began to raise a shaking hand to let Nora know he was alright when he caught the look on her face. Fear. The only time he had ever seen fear on her face was whenever he was in danger. He put two and two together and rolled clumsily to the left. Not a moment too soon, as something crashed into the ground where he had just been. He got a glimpse of a round, pupilless eye that glowed crimson before he realized how big of trouble he was in. He managed to roll backward, knowing the second attack was coming.

Sure enough it did a second later. The gleaming white fangs barely missed him as the second head, too, furrowed into the earth. Ren managed to pull himself to his feet, holding his pistols at the ready as the Grimm reared up, staring at him. Two heads. Four eyes. Black and white. A King Taijitu. Ren didn't have the energy for this, and he knew it. Still, he was a student of Beacon, and he'd go down fighting, if nothing else. Both heads shot out to the side and forward. He crouched, preparing to jump. With any luck, he could get the heads to smash into each other, and hopefully buy him a bit of time for reinforcements to show up.

The snake, however, seemed to have anticipated this action, and when he leapt, and black head angled upward with him, smashing into his right side and sending him careening to dirt a ways off. He slid across the ground, leaving a small trench in his wake. The Grimm followed him closely, slithering across the ground, the white head leading. It reached him as he was just managing to shakily push himself to his elbows, gasping desperately to try and reclaim the air that had been knocked from his lungs. It reared back, opened its mouth, and dove forward.

Ren closed his eyes. He had to admit, of all the ways he thought he might die as a Hunter, being swallowed alive by a King Taijitu on Beacon's grounds had never really occurred to him as one of them. There was a kind of poetry about it though, he supposed. A King Taijitu had been his first real fight after gaining admittance to the school, and now it seemed like it would be his final one as well.

Suddenly, there was a rushing sound, following by the sound of metal tearing through flesh. He heard a high-pitched keening, that was abruptly cut off by another slicing sound. He felt a person land beside him, and a hand gently cupped the back of his head, resting it gently in someone's lap. He inhaled, and smiled as the scent of roses and strawberries filled his senses. Magenta eyes cracked open to look up into worried silver ones.

"Ruby," he greeted.

She stopped biting her lip and smiled, relieved that her friend was alright. "Hello, Ren." She said gently. "Glad to see you're not dead. Though," she gave his appearance a once over, "you could certainly be doing a lot better for yourself."

He chuckled. "Nice to see you too." He pulled his head from her lap, struggling into a sitting position, aware of her hand on his back the entire time. A warmth radiated from it that he found comforting and relaxing. The King Taijitu's headless corpse lay beside them, slowly deteriorating. Ren nodded at it. "Thanks."

Her smile got wider. "Of course."

"The rest of RWBY?"

"Helping everyone finish off the last of the Grimm. C'mon, let's get you up. I can see Nora losing her shit over there." Ren nodded and grimaced, pain spiking through his body as Ruby hauled him to his feet. He put an arm around her shoulders, and she kept a firm grip on his waist, taking as much of his weight as she could.

They limped back to their friends, the remainder of the Grimm having been defeated with the arrival of team RWBY. Black mist rose all over the Beacon grounds as the soulless bodies faded away. Students were standing or sitting, some even lying, around, breathing heavily. Others were crying. The battle had not been without causalities. Ruby and Ren made it to the collective grouping of their two teams and professors Oobleck, Port, and Peach.

A relieved Nora threw her arms around Ren's neck the instant Ruby released him to stand on his own, causing everyone to smile.

"Good to see you, Ren," Jaune said. "When we saw the Taijitu hit you..." he trailed off, leaving it obvious what they had suspected. Jaune shook his head, putting aside the depressing thoughts. "Anyway," he started, drawing in the attention of his friends and professors. "Does _anybody _have the slightest clue what's going on?"

Ruby sighed, glancing at her teammates while running a hand through her hair. "Yeah, we do. And you're not gonna like it..."

* * *

**A/N:** So, what did everyone think? I really enjoyed writing this chapter, and I feel like it flows much better than either of the other two chapters thus far. But I'll leave that up to all of you to decide. I hope I did the combat proper justice. Also, longest chapter for this story yet. Woots!

Anyway, please review! Reviews make me happy :D

PS - Totally changed my penname, in case that was confusing anyone. The old one was getting, well...old


	4. Relentless

**A/N: **Hello again, friends. Chapter 4! Woots! Wasn't sure I was gonna be able to get this up this weekend, but I managed it. Anyway, please enjoy!

* * *

Relentless

"-and so we got here as fast as we could." Ruby took a breath. "We expected the worst whenever we saw the smoke, though I guess that was just all the dust kicked into the air by the attack." She motioned toward the now-closed gates. "Fortunately, Beacon's still here."

"Thanks in much part to Team JNPR!" Professor Port exclaimed enthusiastically. "If not for their swift and decisive action in battle, we would surely be in a far sorrier state!"

Said team had vastly different reactions to the praise. Pyrrha stood up straight, puffing out her chest with pride, mainly for their leader's sake, who was looking at his shoes with a sheepish expression on his face. Nora was beaming widely while Ren showed no reaction whatsoever. He was far too busy trying to gather his strength, leaning on Nora while he concentrated. There was no telling when another scuffle could break out, and he needed to have a sufficient amount of Aura if he expected to be of any help.

"Yes, quite extraordinary! Well done JNPR!" Oobleck added. "And let us not forget team RWBY as well!"

"Yes, well, we couldn't really let our school be destroyed," Ruby awkwardly said. She hadn't really been prepared for praise. "Anyway, back to the matter at hand. We need to work out what our next step is."

"I'm more interested in how they're controlling the Grimm," Peach said, her eyes hard.

"It's possible that they've discovered some new property of Dust that we're unaware of," Weiss provided. If this was true, she was going to have to have a serious discussion with her father.

"Is that possible?" Pyrrha asked. "Controlling something using Dust?"

The heiress shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know. We're still years from understanding Dust entirely. We're finding out new properties practically every day. It is completely possible that there is an undiscovered type of Dust that could grant this sort of power."

"I just...feel like there's more to it then that. Grimm are _soulless_ creatures. They can't understand logic or strategy. Yet the Grimm that assaulted us seemed organized. They seemed like they could think."

"That could all just be a side effect of whatever they're using to control them," Pyrrha pointed out. "If that's the case, it doesn't become such a farfetched idea."

"Even so..."

"Jamie," Oobleck talked over her. "We can worry about the whats and hows later. For now, Miss Rose is right, we need to focus on what we should do to better insure we survive."

Professor Peach puffed out her cheeks for a second before sighing resignedly. "Fine, whatever." She shrugged. "I'm gonna go reinforce the gates and talk with the students. Someone needs to calm them down." She walked off toward the students that were meandering near the wall.

Ruby watched as she laid a hand on a young girl's shoulder as she was weeping over the body of her friend. She winced, getting the feeling that it would be a scene that was going to be played out far too many times before they got through this.

"You'll have to forgive Professor Peach," Port was saying. "She's always had a thirst for knowledge, and if she doesn't understand something it will bother her greatly. At times she can let it overshadow the more important issues at hand."

"Yes, we all know what she's like, Peter. On to more urgent matters!"

"Right, of course, Bartholomew." Port stroked his mustache for a moment, letting out a low 'hmmm' as he did so. "The way I see it, there are two tasks set before us that we must accomplish. First and foremost," he held up one finger, "is to secure the school against further attack." Those around him nodded. Another finger came up, "The second is to try and asses what exactly it is our opponents want. The first should be easy enough. We'll need to activate the school's Aura shield."

Jaune cut in, entirely incredulous. "The _school_ has an Aura shield? That seems a bit…impossible."

"Well it's not, Mr. Arc, and if you have been paying one bit of attention in my class you would have known that Aura shields have been around for decades!"

Jaune just looked at the man with a blank expression. "Professor Oobleck, sir, I hardly think now is the time to be bringing up _class._"

Professor Oobleck paused for a second. "…You would be absolutely correct, Mr. Arc. This is a first!" Jaune sighed in exasperation while everyone else laughed. "Back to the matter at hand. I shall go activate the shield. I shall retrieve myself a glass of coffee as well! The rest of you see if you can't formulate some idea as to what's going on." With that, Oobleck zipped away, leaving Teams JNPR and RWBY alone with Port.

"So...any ideas?" Jaune questioned the group.

"We couldn't find anything out when we were in Vale, unfortunately," Blake noted quietly from beside Yang.

"We shoulda brought those losers from the alley along for the ride." Yang put an elbow on her partner's shoulder leaned against her, cocking her hip out. "Could've interrogated them 'til they told us _exactly_ what was going on."

Weiss shook her head. "That wouldn't have worked, Yang."

The blonde just smirked. "Oh trust me, Princess, I can be _very_ persuasive."

"I think she meant that they probably wouldn't know anything, sis."

"Oh...well...would've at least made me feel better," she mumbled.

"And we all know that's the most important thing in the world of Yang," Ruby said wryly.

"Oi oi, those are fighting words, sis." She cocked her gauntlets with a grin, taking a step forward. Blake laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Let it go, Yang. We've got more important things to worry about."

"Just trying to lighten the mood."

"And a valiant effort indeed, Ms. Xiao Long." Port puffed out his chest and began walking, the students following him. "However, I fear we are no closer to discovering our enemies' objectives for it." Yang rolled her eyes. Professor and veteran Huntsman he may be, Port suffered from enjoying his own voice too much sometimes.

"I've got it!" Nora suddenly exclaimed, holding a fist up in the air. "They wanted to _die_!" Her companions all stopped walking, staring at her with wide eyes.

"Um..." Ruby couldn't quite find the words. "Nora...what...?"

"Well, why else would attack us? We're Beacon! Everyone knows you don't mess with Beacon!"

There was a few moments of silence following that statement.

"You know, I wasn't honestly expecting that answer to make any amount of sense," Yang admitted. "But...she's kinda right. Attacking Beacon is basically suicide."

"They probably knew that most of the staff wasn't here," reasoned Blake. "If we take that into account, then attacking the school isn't all that ridiculous of an idea."

"While that may be true, we still don't know why they'd assault us in the first place." It was the first time Ren had added his input into the conversation.

Ruby sidled up beside him, gently laying a hand on his upper arm. "Ren, are you alright?"

He nodded and gave her a small smile, trying to ignore the warmth that threatened to spread to his cheeks. "I'm fine. I just needed to gather my strength for a bit. I used too much Aura. If another fight breaks out, I should be able to hold my own. At the least, you won't have to come save me again."

She chuckled. "Just because I won't have doesn't mean I-"

And suddenly the rest of her sentence was lost as the world exploded.

* * *

Weiss' ears were ringing. Her head was spinning and her vision was blurry. She was face down on the ground, her cheek pressed firmly to the dirt. _What...?_

She saw her leader struggle to her feet, red cloak flapping away in the wind behind her. Her sister as well stood. Weiss blinked, trying to clear her eyes. What had happened? Why was everyone on the ground?

She pushed herself to her hands and knees, a small tremor running through her body as she did so. She glanced up again, still trying to put the pieces together. Ruby and Yang were firing their weapons, and she heard Pyrrha and Professor Port's voices saying something as well. She glanced about, noticing the rubble and bits of stone that lay on the ground.

_God no._ She turned to Beacon's wall and saw exactly what she had been hoping she wouldn't.

Where once the stone had stood high and unbroken around Beacon, there was a now a gaping, jagged hole torn straight through where the gate had been only minutes before. Through the gap poured Grimm, setting upon those students still left standing or forcing themselves to their feet. Weiss shook her head, trying her best to clear it.

She felt a hand grip her under her arm and pull her lightly upward. "C'mon, Weiss," Blake murmured as she set her on feet. The heiress stood shakily on her own for a second, Blake's hand on her shoulder to steady her. Concerned amber eyes watched her apprehensively. "Are you alright?"

Weiss closed her eyes and took a deep breath, forcing her trembling nerves to cease. "Yes, yes I'm fine. I just needed to re-orient myself." Blake nodded, removing her hand.

"Weiss," Ruby called, glancing back over her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Somehow she still had the energy to roll her eyes. "I'm fine, Ruby. What's the situation?"

"They've blown straight through the wall somehow," Pyrrha commented, suddenly beside them, an injured Jaune leaning heavily on her. He seemed to be favoring his right leg quite heavily, and was wincing every time his left foot touched the ground.

Ren was there, Nora close behind him. His sleeve was torn, and a small amount of blood trickled from a gash underneath, but he seemed not to notice. His magenta eyes were blazing, and his muscles were tense. "We need to join the fight. Hold them off, push them back out of the breach." With that, he and Nora were gone, weapons glinting as they attacked.

"Indeed, into the fray we must plunge again!" Port was there too. "Onward, students of Beacon!" he roared, before charging forward. Weiss glanced at her partner, who shrugged and rushed after him. Weiss pulled her rapier up, and glided off across the ground. She flew straight to a Beowolf, piercing it through the chest as it was bearing down on a freshmen.

She looked at the chaos that surrounded her as the Grimm vanished. What she saw disheartened her. If the first attack had caught the students unaware, then this one had basically snuck up on them while they were sleeping. They were trying their best, but Weiss could tell that it wouldn't be enough. She watched as a Beowolf pounced on Professor Peach, teeth digging deep into her shoulder, blood sprayed from the wound as the blonde teacher fell. Professor Oobleck was lying unconscious on the ground a distance off. It looked as though he had been struck by debris.

Weiss turned back to the bulk of the battle, summoning a glyph under an Ursa trying to get the drop on Ruby with a lift of two fingers. The confused Grimm spun helplessly, and the red-cloaked girl barely spared it a glance before slicing it in half.

She gave Weiss a nod of thanks, and the white-haired girl could see in Ruby's eyes that she knew as much as Weiss that this was a losing battle. No matter how amazingly they fought, with the gates gone and no way to secure their perimeter, they would eventually be overrun.

_Think, Weiss. There has got to be some way out of this. Something we can do..._she wracked her brain, and it came to her. She had forgotten thanks to the explosion, but now she recalled.

"The Aura shield!" She exclaimed, and Ruby shot her a sidelong glance.

"Exactly, Ms. Schnee," a voice behind her called out, followed swift by a loud _bang_. A Beowolf tumbled by her, missing an entire chest cavity, from the looks of it. Professor Port stepped up beside her, laying a heavy hand on her shoulder. His gaze was grim underneath his bushy brows, his normally jovial persona gone. "We must activate the Aura shield around Beacon immediately if we are to have any hope of repelling these invaders."

"How?"

He motioned with his weapon to the tower that housed Beacon's namesake. "There, the lights. They only need to be fed enough Aura, and the shield will activate. It will also alert Ozpin about the sit-_hrrrk_" his sentence abruptly became a pained gurgle.

Weiss stumbled back in horror, bumping into Ruby unintentionally. Her partner spun around, expecting an attack, but froze when she saw Weiss and the expression on her face.

"Weiss? What's wr-" she question tapered off abruptly as she looked up at Professor Port though, eyes widening as she tried to understand what she was looking at.

The portly man was grasping at a white, curving protrusion that was jutting from his chest. Blood gushed from around it, turning his burgundy jacket dark. A small stream of crimson dribbled from the corner of his mouth. Behind him, a Boarbatusk snorted and pawed at the ground. It had to be young, its tusks having no significant curl to speak of. One of which was gored through Professor Port. He grit his teeth, spinning his weapon in his grip and tucking it underneath of his arm. He fired once and heard a squeal of pain. The tusk was pulled form his chest with a sickening _squelch_ as the Grimm reared back in pain.

Port turned and, before the beast could recover, cleaved its head clean in two. After that, the only thing he could really manage to do was fall backward, his Blunderaxe slipping from his grip.

"Professor!" Weiss cried, running to him and skidding to her knees next to him. "Oh-Oh god!" The amount of blood that poured from his chest...there was no way. She knew it. He knew it.

He struggled to speak, coughing thickly. "Ms. Schnee...Weiss." She took his hand, and he smiled. "You must activate the barrier, or else Beacon will fall. Your friends are relying on you." He coughed again. "Consider this an old mentor's final assignment. I know you won't let me down." His eyes closed, and he looked almost peaceful. "I...I wish I could have seen the outstanding Huntress you will be..."

And then he was still. Weiss gently laid his hand back on his chest, taking a moment to lean her head on top of it. Ruby stood over her, eyes darting from left to right.

"Weiss," she said gingerly. She hated to be that person, but right now they couldn't focus on this, they had to keep moving.

"I know," her partner replied, and Ruby shivered at her voice. She was trying so hard to hold it all back, but Ruby could hear the hidden pain in the slight waver. "There will be time to mourn later." Weiss pushed herself up and turned to face Ruby. Unshed tears shone brightly in her ice-blue orbs, but she wouldn't let them fall. She had a mission. "We need to activate Beacon's shield."

Ruby nodded. "Where is it?" She asked gently.

"At the top of the tower."

"Right." She cocked Crescent Rose and positioned it behind her. "Help everyone hold down the fort until I'm back."

The white-haired girl clamped her hand around Ruby's arm in a vice-like grip. "You're not going alone."

"I'm the fastest, Weiss."

"There could be some that got further into the school. You are not," she hissed, her grip getting ever stronger, "going alone. I'm not risking losing you too."

Ruby chewed on her lip for a second. Taking Weiss along probably wouldn't slow her down that much, and besides, she was right; there could be more.

"Yang!" Ruby called. The blonde brawler launched an Ursa into the air, where it was promptly cut to ribbons by Blake, and turned to her sister. "Weiss and I are going to activate the shield. Hold them off until we're back."

"Be careful, you two," she shouted back as Blake landed beside her.

"You too!"

She turned back to face the tower. "Ready?" she questioned Weiss without looking. She didn't answer, instead springing forward on a glyph. "Take that as a yes," Ruby mumbled before firing herself off after her.

Weiss glanced back over her shoulder at the receding body of Professor Port.

_Goodbye, Professor._

The two raced across the rooftops of Beacon, not once slowing down. Ruby reigned in her speed slightly. There would have been no point in bringing Weiss along if she just ditched her along the way. The sounds of battle faded away behind them, and soon enough, a relatively complete silence surrounded them.

They reached the tower within a few minutes, fortunately with no undesirable encounters along the way. They climbed it quickly, Ruby reaching the top first. She collapsed her weapon and strode toward the green globes of varying sizes suspended all around the circular chamber. Weiss landed lightly behind her, letting out a small huff of breath. She had used up almost all of her stamina trying to keep up with her leader.

"How do we activate it?"

Weiss walked forward, laying a handing against the closest globe. "Professor Port said that we just needed to channel some Aura into them."

"Which one?"

"I'm not sure. But at a guess," she pointed to the largest of them, in the dead center of the room, "I would say that one."

"Right. Let's do this." Ruby leapt upward, planting her feet on the light and grasping hold of the pole it was nestled in. She touched a hand to it and concentrated, pouting as much of her Aura into and out of her palm as she could.

At first, nothing happened, and Ruby began to panic. What if something was wrong with it? What if the attack had somehow taken it out of commission? She doubled her efforts, feeling every ounce of energy she had left over leave her body. She knew it was dangerous to overuse her Aura like this, but she was desperate. It was a risk she was more than willing to take. Black was beginning to creep in at the edges of her vision whenever the orb finally reacted.

It seemed to flicker once or twice, and then suddenly flared to the life. The light it gave off blinded her, and she threw her arm in front of her face. It pierced through her eyelids anyway. It blasted outward, a wave of green that rapidly expanded toward the edges of Beacon's grounds.

"Ruby, it worked!"

The young huntress-in-training smiled to herself. Her friends would be safe. At least for now. The darkness finished taking over her eyesight, and she slid from the top of the orb, barely hearing Weiss call out her name in panic as she plummeted toward the floor below.

* * *

**A/N: **So that was ch. 4 guys and gals. What did we think? It was a little rough starting this one out for me, but once I got into it, I felt it flowed a bit better.

Also, I should warn you, this is probably a pretty good feel for what a lot of this series is going to be like. Expect some angst (if any of you have read my PJO fic, you know what you're in for)

Anyway, I'd say we're sitting at about a third of the way done with Book 1. As I said, it is far and away the shortest of the three. It could end up being longer, I'm not sure. It really depends on how fleshed out my writing gets from my outline to the page

As always, please review review review! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease (I don't know how to do a puppy-dog eye emoticon else I totally would)

Until next time!

**EDIT:** For the reviewer Zero who asked what the pairings were, and for anyone else who's curious, I guess. The only two I will confirm are Bumblebee ('cause I ship that shit harder than the Titanic) and Ren/Ruby. Ren/Ruby's a bit of an experiment, and I will be delving more into how it came into being, so don't worry. It's not just gonna be imma just throw it in your face and be like 'HERE THERE LIKE EACH OTHER K?'


	5. Eleven

**A/N: **Sorry this one's a bit late guys, got tied up with Holidays and all of that jazz. Anywho, please enjoy!

* * *

Eleven

Ozpin glanced at the display on the tablet before him, pushing up his glasses further up his nose as he did so. He took a sip of coffee, eyes never leaving the script on the piece of glass before him. A small 'hmm' escaped his lips, and he reached out and swiped a finger upward along the surface, causing the text on it to scroll.

Amber eyes narrowed at one specific line of text, and he tapped it, highlighting it.

He glanced upward and around, taking in the sea of faces laid out before him, most of whom were focusing on the elderly gentleman currently standing at the podium in the front of the auditorium. Ozpin sighed. He knew that it was because of his status as one of the headmasters present at the meeting that he was placed up on stage, but he really didn't like being in a position where everyone could see him like this. Glynda sat beside him, seemingly paying rapt attention to the speaker, though Ozpin knew at the slightest movement from him she would give him her undivided focus.

These conferences were pointless. Every year it was the same old thing. Gather up the majority of the staff from every higher level combat school in Remnant, put them in one room and try and have them reach a satisfying standard for teaching Huntsmen and Huntresses that could be applied across all of the kingdoms.

It would never happen, and Ozpin had told them that time and again. Each kingdom raised their warriors differently, and that was the way it had to be, for each kingdom had their own little quirks that only they could account for. Trying to standardize the education process would only result in failure. But they never listened to him, no matter how much sway his opinion carried. He sighed. The only reason he still came to these things was because he respected the current president of the committee, the man currently at the podium. Well, that and stopping them from making any horrible decisions.

Much like the line he had picked out stating that the team format was outdated and ineffectual. Ozpin snorted internally. Over three decades as _the_ top combat school, and they claimed his system didn't produce results. His eyes moved back to the president, an elderly gentleman with a shock of white hair and a bushy beard, animatedly waving his arms as he emphasized some point.

He shifted, preparing to stand and address this concern. He hated to be the center of attention, but in this case it would be the most effective strategy. Interrupting the president was sure to make his point stick in their minds.

He had just started to move when a loud, frantic beeping sound pierced the air. The president stopped speaking, and every eye in the auditorium turned to face the right hand side of the stage, where Ozpin sat.

"I apologize," he said calmly. "I believe that's mine." He reached a hand inside of his jacket and produced a black scroll. He opened it and tapped a few buttons. Glynda watched him closely, acid green eyes narrowed in worry. She was aware that the tone the scroll had made was reserved strictly for emergencies, and judging by the increasingly darkening expression on Ozpin's face, whatever had happened was serious.

The headmaster handed his mug to Glynda, who took it without question. He picked up his cane with his freed hand and stood, turning to address the assembly. "Ladies and gentlemen of the committee, Mr. President, I fear I must leave you now." There was a shocked murmur that spread through the crowd. "All present Beacon staff," Ozpin continued undeterred, "are to prepare to depart immediately. Our home has dire need of us." He spun and walked toward the back exit of the stage.

"Ozpin, wait," the president called softly. The silver haired man paused, glancing at him over his shoulder. "What's going on? Can it not wait?"

"No, I'm afraid it can't." Ozpin opened his scroll, and pressed a button. The large projection screen behind the center of the stage came alive with large-version of his whatever his scroll was displaying. A gasp traveled through the crowd at the scene before them. Across the top of the screen the words "WARNING: PERIMETER BREACH" scrolled endlessly in an angry red. Below it was an array of constantly changing images, clearly taken in real time. With each one, the situation they were depicting got bleaker and bleaker.

There was jagged, gaping hole in an otherwise solid wall, smoke and Grimm pouring from the opening like pus from a wound. Bodies littered the ground, the grass stained crimson around them. A shot of the city, fires and plumes of smog clearly visible over the rooftops. Each and every picture showed some form of death or destruction that left the assembly in a stunned silence. The final shot, though, was the one that froze everyone's world. It seemed to be taken from the air, if Glynda had to guess, it was taken from the Beacon Tower, in the center of the campus. It was angled outward, toward the front gate and the hole in Beacon's defensive wall.

That was not what drew everyone's attention. No, that would be what lay beyond the green, shimmering curtain that was Beacon's Aura shield. A large, seething mass of black that stretched back as far as the camera could see. Easily distinguishable in the midst of it were the bone-white masks of innumerable Grimm. It was a force unlike anything anybody in the room had seen.

The president recovered first. "Go, Ozpin. Take whatever, _whoever_, you need, and go."

Ozpin nodded and walked away, Glynda falling in behind him, heels clacking sharply against the hardwood.

The headmaster spoke as they left the stage behind, moving through the dull grey corridors of the conference center. "I want all Beacon staff packed and ready to leave by tomorrow evening."

He held out his hand, and Glynda placed his mug in it. "Tomorrow, sir?"

He nodded. "I'm going to take a day to gather reinforcements. We need to be able to defeat that large force of Grimm. Leaving tomorrow will put us there in two days. The shield will hold." His eyes narrowed, a glint of steel in them that Glynda had seen only very rarely. "Send a message to the headmaster of Lighthouse; if I recall correctly a few of his students grew close with teams RWBY and JNPR last year at the festival." She suppressed a shiver that threatened to travel up her spine at the tone of his voice. Whoever had attacked Beacon had no idea what they had brought on themselves.

"Right away, sir."

His raised his mug to his mouth. Plans, ideas, and strategies played out in his mind. Whoever had done this had known about the conference. They had known he wouldn't be there. They had thought that they could sneak in behind his back and attack his school, his _students._ They were about to find out how wrong they were.

_Nobody_ attacked his home.

* * *

Waking wasn't a slow, progressive process. It wasn't a sluggish slouch from unconscious to conscious. It was fast, and it was sharp.

Ruby's eyes flew open, her mind and senses kicking into overdrive, the panic and worry from before she had blacked out imprinted in her mind. Noises blared out all around her. Yelling, crying, murmuring. The scent of smoke and blood filled her nostrils, and she almost gagged. There was a hand on her shoulder, gently trying to keep her in place. She struggled against it, forcing herself into a sitting position.

"Ruby, calm down." Silver eyes swiveled around to look who had spoken. Yang stood protectively over her sister, though Ruby took note of the fact that it wasn't her hand she had felt. "It's alright, sis."

Ruby took a deep breath, focusing her mind to sort between everything. The noises in the background began to fade and cloying scent of death receded. She took a fresh look around.

"What-" she swallowed. Her throat felt like sandpaper. "What happened?"

"You almost died," Blake said quietly from her opposite side, and Ruby turned to her. "Weiss carried you back here after-"

Silver eyes flew open wide. "Weiss!" Panic laced her voice as she noticed that her partner wasn't among those near her. "Where is she? Is she alright?"

"Calm down, sis. Weiss is fine. She's over there, with..." Yang trailed off and jerked her head over her shoulder. Ruby moved her gaze to look past her sister, and saw the heiress in the distance, kneeling at the side of something on the ground. Ruby's heart sunk when she realized it was Professor Port's body. "I just about shit myself when she showed up with you in her arms. You wouldn't wake up no matter how hard we tried." There was a slight tremor to Yang's voice, one that both her sister and her partner caught. Blake's eyes narrowed slightly as she watched the blonde with concern. "Thankfully, Ren here," here she held up her left hand, which was currently holding someone else's, "told us you just used up too much Aura and that he could help."

Ruby followed the connected hands, down a green-clad arm, to a pale face with magenta eyes that were staring at her intently. A small blush crept up her neck whenever she realized the hand on her shoulder was his, something that Blake didn't miss. She stored the information away for later investigation.

He noticed her gaze, and answered her question before she could speak it. "I'm siphoning some of Yang's spare Aura into you. Giving you a jump start on recovering your own."

"I told him I could probably do that by myself, but he insisted there could be all sorts of 'complications' and 'dangers,'" Yang rolled her eyes, "so he had to control the transfer himself."

"If it wasn't dealt with properly it could've-"

"Yeah, I know. Explosions and shit." Ren just kept his mouth shut, instead settling for removing his hands from the two sisters.

"You should be fine now, Ruby." He offered her a hand up, which she gladly accepted, avoiding his eyes as she did so.

"Thanks," she murmured. He gently squeezed her hand and gave her a small smile, causing Ruby to become _very_ interested in her boots all of a sudden, and headed off toward his team

Yang swept her up in a hug after he left. Her voice was sincere when she said, "I'm glad you're alright."

Ruby returned the embrace. "I'm always alright, Yang. For now, though," she extricated herself from Yang's grasp. "We need to check on everyone else and figure out what to do next." She looked around her. The smoke from the explosions had cleared away, and in the fading light of the early evening, the scene looked unreal.

The grass was burnt and torn up in deep gashes. Rubble was strewn throughout the entire area, and some debris had even managed to get embedded in some of the closer trees. Patches of crimson blossomed on the ground in several locations, and many of them ended with an unmoving body. Nearer to them were the survivors of the battle. Some sat alone and others stood in small groups. All of them looked shell-shocked, and the few that were talking were just barely whispering.

There was a line of the wounded laid out further down. Teammates and friends knelt over them, pressing strips of shirts, headbands, handkerchiefs, whatever they could get their hands on, against bleeding injuries. Team JNPR was there too, flitting from person to person. She flinched as Pyrrha reset one boy's knee as his teeth clenched down on a strip of leather, a gurgled cry of pain emanating from his throat. Professors Oobleck and Peach were among those being looked after.

She couldn't see too well from her vantage point, but the entire side of Oobleck's face seemed caked in blood, and Peach's torso was covered in bloodied bandages. There wouldn't be rejoining the fight anytime soon. So that left just the students.

"How many?" she asked quietly.

Yang looked at her reluctantly.

"Eleven so far, not including the professior," Blake answered softly.

Ruby blinked slowly, trying to process the information. Eleven students of Beacon, her classmates, gone like that._ Almost three teams worth._

She breathed out heavily. She had to get everyone moving and organized. Milling about in shock wasn't going to help anyone.

"Alright," their eyes focused on her. "We need to get the wounded inside." She glanced out at the lifeless bodies that had once been comrades and classmates. "We need to move them, as well," she added gently.

"Ruby," Blake spoke up. "Why don't you take a second? You just recovered." The brunette was already shaking her head before Blake finished her sentence.

"I'm fine. We need to get this done and reorganize. Half of the reason things have gone so badly for us so far is because we've been so unprepared for all of this. Not anymore." There was a solid look of resolve burning in her eyes.

Blake was quiet for a moment before she spoke again, "I'll go help team JNPR with the wounded. We'll let everyone know to reconvene in the cafeteria. I'll send anyone who wants to help with the bodies your way."

Ruby nodded, and Blake left to join with team JNPR with the wounded.

"You're sure you're alright?"

"Yeah," her voice was quiet. "As alright as I can be right now. C'mon, let's go get Weiss, we need to get started if we want to finish by sunset."

It was hours later that they found themselves in the cafeteria, surrounded by a crowd of people. The remaining students of Beacon, those who had been elsewhere on campus during the fight, had now joined them. They had been shocked to discovered the situation, but had pitched in to the best of their abilities.

With their aid, all of the injured had been brought inside and laid in the ballroom, where freshman spent their first night before initiation. They left behind a few students who had some knowledge of healing to care for them. Ruby, Weiss, Yang, and a few other students had moved the bodies into Beacon's morgue. They had thought it a little morbid that the school had one, but they weren't going to deny its usefulness. Weiss had refused to let anyone else touch Port's body, transporting it herself the entire way on a glyph.

The sun had dropped below the horizon by the time they had finished everything, and the moon now shone brightly above the school.

Ruby took a deep breath, eyeing everyone in the room. Yang, noticing she was about to start speaking, let off a blast from Ember Cecelia. The conversation buzzing about the room died away, and all eyes turned to the girl in red. She swallowed nervously. It was easy to talk about planning their next step whenever they were on the battlefield and there were older, more experienced veterans around her. Now though, they were all gone, and it was only her left. What gave her the right to lead these people?

But Ruby noticed the way they looked at her. Desperate for some sort of reassurance, for some sort of direction. She had to do her best, for them. Even if she wasn't the best choice to lead, right now it was her responsibility.

"Alright, everyone. We're clearly in a bit of a...situation."

"That's putting it mildly," someone called out, and a strained chuckle passed through the crowd.

A humorless smile pulled at Ruby's lips. "As you're aware, we're being besieged by Grimm. We don't know how they're organizing against us like this, or why, only that they are intent upon taking the school." She noticed she was unconsciously gripping his skirt so hard her knuckles were white, and she made herself let go and breathe. "We've activated the Aura shield, so for now, at least, we are safe."

"Pffft, _safe_," a voice scoffed over her, and Ruby saw Cardin Winchester step forward. "We're not _safe_ inside of this school anymore than we are outside of it. That shield won't last forever."

Ruby met his gaze levelly, refusing to back down. "When we activated the shield, it sent out a distress signal to Professor Ozpin as well. I'd say it will probably only be a day or two until he shows up."

"So then we should just sit tight until then, right?" somebody asked.

"it's not that simple," Weiss interjected. "There's something more to all of this. More than just Beacon could just be in danger. It is our responsibility as Huntsmen and Huntresses to find out what's going on."

"We are _not_ Huntsmen and Huntresses," Cardin shot back, voice full of venom.

"We are the closest thing to it right now." The anger in Yang's voice surprised Ruby. "So that means it's time to take your testicles out of your purse and man the fuck up."

Cardin's blue eyes blazed with fury. "Shut up!" His hands balled into fists, and everyone was surprised to see his eyes shining with unshed tears. "This isn't our fight!"

"The hell it's not!" Fire was beginning to lick at the bottom fringes of Yang's mane. "They attacked us, our home! People have _died_ because of them, Cardin!"

"I KNOW!" he roared, the sudden change in the level of his voice giving even Yang pause. His face was red, and he brushed aside a tear before it could fall. "I know," he said again, his tone sounding almost...broken. "You think I don't know?" He took a deep breath before fixing Yang with a stare. "Sky's dead; an Ursa caught him from behind."

Ruby felt her stomach drop. She had never liked team CRDL. They were a bunch of egotistical bullies who seemed to thrive on torturing others. Even still, they were one of the RWBY's sister teams. The fact that one of them was dead...it brought an entirely new level of despair to everything. What if that had been Yang? Or Blake, or Weiss, or Ren or any of them?

Yang's mouth opened and closed as she tried to formulate a response. Cardin did not wait around for her to think of something though, and stormed from of the room, pushing aside a few smaller students on his way out. The two remaining members of CRDL followed quietly after him. An overbearing silence followed their departure.

Ruby could sense that the fight had taken out the last vestiges of spirit the assembled teenagers had. They were drained, physically and mentally. They needed a break; discussing anything more wouldn't get them anywhere at this point.

"We've done all we can for today." She ignored the surprised looks Yang and Blake shot her. "Go rest up, everyone. We'll meet here tomorrow morning to discuss what to do next. Don't lose hope," Ruby continued, her voice sounding far stronger than she felt. "We'll get through this. I promise. Get some sleep, you're going to need it." She turned and left, her cloak swirling behind her. As she left the cafeteria, she heard murmurs begin behind her. Her friends' footsteps sounded behind her, swiftly catching up and falling in step at her back.

Ruby mused on her words, hoping that they had managed to bolster the her classmates, even if only a little. A little hope went a long way, and she got the feeling that they were going to need a lot of it.

Because, despite her words and her belief in them, she couldn't help but feel that the worse was still to come.

* * *

**A/N: **So there we are my friends. Another chapter finished. I hope you enjoyed it. Not a whole lot of plot this time, but it was a necessary transition chapter

I apologize if this one feels kinda rushed

As always, please remember to review!

Until next time ^_^


	6. Of Worries and Plans

**A/N: **Hello once again, my friends! Woots! Chapter 6, the lengthiest thus far! Please enjoy!

* * *

Of Worries and Plans

_The moon looks odd in green_.

Yang sat on the edge of her dorm's roof, right leg dangling over the side. Her left was drawn up, arms wrapped loosely around it. The blonde was resting her chin on her knee, lilac eyes staring up into the night sky. Of course, it was obscured by the shimmering expanse of Beacon's Aura shield, which tinged everything beyond it a vibrant green.

The swirling dome reminded her of the auroras she had seen when her father had taken her up north as a young girl. She had watched them for hours, barely moving an inch as the sky played out the most beautiful display of nature she had ever seen. Her father had wryly commented after the trip that maybe he needed to look into how to make his own auroras, because he had never seen her sit so still for so long.

_Turns out all you have to do is get caught in a siege and activate a giant energy barrier…who knew? _

Yang's chest twinged as reality reasserted itself. Her gaze turned from the sky, out toward Vale. She hoped her father and mother were alright out there. The students had tried sending out messages, but it seemed scroll reception was non-existent at the moment. Whether the shield blocked it, or their enemies were jamming it somehow, it wasn't functioning.

She knew her father could take of himself and her mother. After all, she had learned to fight from somewhere, and he had always been a fearsome opponent. She just wished she could confirm that they were alright. It would be one less thing to worry about. Yang sighed and closed her eyes as a gentle breeze blew by, tousling her hair.

A soft sound alerted her that she was no longer alone on the roof, and she felt a small smile slide across her face.

If this had been their first year, she would never have noticed her visitor's presence, but after spending over a year as the girl's partner, she had learned everything about her. Her habits, her patterns, her moods. Even how to hear her when she was trying to be silent.

"Hello, Blake," she said gently, turning to give the other girl a look over her shoulder. Amber eyes seemed to almost glow in the dark as the brunette regarded her partner. "Couldn't sleep?" Yang turned her face back to the sky, patting the stone beside her. She heard Blake's footsteps as she approached, sliding gracefully onto the edge beside her. Yang never could quite understand how the black-clad girl managed to make every movement as beautiful as she did. She was like a work of art in motion.

"I was waiting up for my partner to return, but she never did." Blake rested her hands on either side of her, leaning back a bit and staring up at the stars. Yang noted that she wasn't wearing her ribbon, cat ears on full display.

Yang grinned sheepishly. "Heh, yeah, sorry about that. Ruby and Weiss?"

"Both asleep. They're exhausted."

"Can't blame them," Yang murmured.

Blake was silent for a moment. "So?"

Yang sighed. "I just needed some air. Some distance to try and wrap my head around today, I guess." Blake made a small noise of understanding. "I mean, one minute we're strolling through Vale all la-di-dah and the next everything's on fire and we're fighting for our lives."

"Two of your favorite things," Blake teased, bumping their shoulders together lightly.

She got a wry smile in response. "Only so long as _I'm_ the one starting the fires." She shook her head briefly, fixing her eyes on Blake's. "This just all seems too unreal, you know? I mean, Beacon's under siege. Beacon! This place always felt so…I don't know…"

"Untouchable?" Blake offered, and could almost visibly see Yang deflate.

"Yeah. And now we're penned up like a bunch of cattle. And Port…I can't even imagine how Weiss is dealing with it."

Blake nodded. "Weiss is strong. She'll survive. She has a good partner, and a good team."

"Yeah she does. I mean, did you hear Ruby earlier?" Blake's brow scrunched together, sensing that Yang's cheer was forced. "She's really getting into this whole leader thing, isn't she?" Blake continued to silently scrutinize the blonde. "Blake?"

"You don't need to worry about her, Yang. She can handle it."

Yang's shoulders slumped. "Am I really that easy to see through?"

"I have good vision," Blake replied with a smirk.

The brawler tapped her dangling heel against the stonework. "I'm just worried. You saw how she reacted back in town, wanting to stay behind and save everyone. She's a fantastic leader. Our team is proof enough of that. But I'm worried this is going to be too much for her, and that she's going to take too much responsibility for everything if it turns ugly." She grimaced. "Which it's most likely going to. She cares too much, and as a leader in this kind of situation, there's a high chance that's not gonna end well for her."

Blake clasped her hands in her lap, contemplating her response. "Have faith in her, Yang. Ruby is a smart girl, and a great leader. It's precisely because of her compassion that everyone turned to her. She gives them hope in a desperate situation."

"But she doesn't have to be the leader to do that. She could just give speeches or something. Why are you shaking your head at me?"

"You've never been part of an organization or army have you?" Yang shook her head. "Didn't think so. People look to their _leaders_ for inspiration and strength. If they just pass off the motivation duties to somebody else, then the soldiers will be demoralized and a lot less likely to actually listen to them."

Her partner pursed her lips in thought. "Well…what about Jaune? He seemed to be doing a pretty good job of marshalling the students by the time we showed up."

Again, Blake shook her head, and Yang was momentarily distracted by her hair glistening in the green light. "Jaune is a strategist, a general on the battlefield, but not really off of it. He could lead an army into combat, but could trip over his own shoelaces just walking down the hallway. It's the same way with the rest of us. We all have something that would make us ill-suited to lead. Ren is too quiet and closed off. Nora, too excitable. Pyrrha's too perfect-"

"Too _perfect_? What does that even _mean_?"

"She's a celebrity. She's out of everyone's league in their minds. She's too inaccessible." Yang scoffed, but Blake continued anyway. "Weiss is too arrogant. You're too reckless," this caused a small cry of protest from the blonde beside her, but she ignored her, "And I'm too distant. No offense to any of us, but none of us are particularly inspiring people."

Yang snorted. "And Ruby is?"

"Entrance into Remnant's top combat school two years early. A weapons prodigy. Leader of the freshmen team that won the Vytal tournament by a landslide. Defeated every single one of her opponents in the individual matches of the singles tournament. None of the rest of us could boast that. Not even Pyrrha. I'd say your sister is a pretty damn inspiring young woman." Yang opened her mouth to retort, but Blake put a finger under her chin, closing it for her to prevent her being interrupted. Yang had to suppress a shiver at her touch. "I'd also say that you're aware of all of this already, but you're looking for an acknowledgment of what you already realized. Ruby is the only one who can lead us through this, and you know that."

She removed her finger from Yang's jaw, and Yang almost whimpered at the loss of contact. She was having more and more trouble controlling herself around her partner with each passing day. She couldn't let Blake know, of course. Not yet. She didn't know how she would handle it. Though with how much difficulty she was having keeping a reign on herself, she figured it wouldn't be long before she _had_ to tell her. She shook off those thoughts though. Now was not the time for that. She had to focus, no matter how badly she just wanted to grab Blake, pin her against the wall and-

_Focus!_

"I guess," she replied, ignoring the heat welling in her chest. She hoped that Blake's faunus hearing didn't pick up her increased heart rate. "And normally I'd be all about that. I'd be as proud as I could possibly be. But this situation…" She shook her head. "It's bad."

Blake studied Yang. There was something else bothering her besides the Ruby thing. That was just what she was channeling her uneasiness into. Realization dawned as it clicked in her head. "Cardin."

Yang flinched and lowered her head, eyes cast down at her dangling foot. "I shouldn't have shouted at him like that," she said quietly.

Blake rested a hand on Yang's shoulder, her heart aching for her partner. "You didn't know."

Blond hair swayed everywhere as she shook her head. "That's no excuse. We're in a terrible situation, and I just made it worse by bringing in some stupid grudge." The faunus' grip on her shoulder tightened. "I hate Cardin. He's a Grade A bag of douche, but I would never, _ever_ wish anything like that on him, on anyone. Losing your partner…" She reached up and rested her hand on Blake's. "If that were you. If I lost you…I can't even imagine…"

Blake removed their hands from Yang's shoulder, entwining their fingers together as she scooted closer to her partner. She laid her head on gently on her partner's shoulder, causing the brawler to jump in surprise. Blake had never been a big one for displays of affection, so this was a little unexpected. She was sure that Blake could hear her heartbeat now, as loudly as it was thumping in her ears. She could probably see her blush too.

"I'm not going anywhere," Blake murmured softly.

Yang chuckled, squeezing her partner's hand. "Good."

They stayed like that for a while longer, watching the sky. Yang lost track of time, but she didn't really care.

Eventually, Blake moved, pulling herself away from the blonde. Yang frowned imperceptibly at the loss of her body heat.

"C'mon," she said gently. "We need sleep, and Ruby's going to want everyone up early to discuss what we should do next."

Yang exhaled noisily. "Yeah," she reluctantly agreed, standing up atop the wall and stretching. She hopped off the little ledge onto the roof before turning to offer Blake a hand down. Amber eyes rolled at the action, but she took her hand anyway, and together they made their way back to their dorm room.

* * *

Ren took a small sip from his mug, releasing an internal sigh of relief as the hot tea coursed down his throat and through his system. He returned the glass to its resting place atop his hand, enjoying the heat that flowed into his palm from it. He was aware many people considered it strange that he sometimes never placed his drink on the table, but it was a comforting custom to him. It been born from a joke when he was much younger. Nora's father once amusedly stated that the tabletop was made of lava to his daughter and adopted son.

Nora had just smiled wide and glared at the wooden surface, as if challenging it to try and burn her food. On the other hand, Ren, in his youthful naivety, had snatched his cup from the table frantically, balancing it in his hand the rest of the meal, legitimately concerned for its wellbeing. Mr. Valkyrie had laughed so uproariously at his reaction that his wife had made him leave the room until he could calm himself down. When he came back in, wiping tears from his eyes, and saw the young boy was _still_ holding the glass in his hand, he lost it all over again, falling to the floor and howling in mirth.

After that, it had been a sort of inside joke between them. Occasionally, Nora's father would look at Ren and, with a twinkle in his eye, ask him if he didn't think the table felt like it was getting rather hot. Ren would glare right back at him, fighting a smile, and pick up his mug with slow, deliberate movements, resting it in his hand for the remainder of the meal. It had slowly become a habit, and one of the things that Ren took comfort in any time he was away from home.

He figured that if ever there was a time for comfort, it was now. He was sat in Beacon's cafeteria, Nora beside him and his teammates across from him. They all looked exhausted. Sleep had not been an easy commodity to come by the previous night.

Not that Nora let that slow her down as she devoured a stack of pancakes that Ren had made his team. Pyrrha was methodically eating through her own plate, though her mind was clearly elsewhere. Jaune was just poking at the food, looking more worn-out than the rest of them. Ren hoped his leg wasn't bothering him still. The young leader had assured him earlier that morning that his Aura had healed the injury and that it felt just fine, but Ren remained skeptical. He would have to have a talk with him later.

Ren's gaze shifted up the table a little ways, to where their sister team sat. RWBY seemed just as worn out as JNPR, eyes all framed by dark circles. All except for Blake, who somehow managed to look fully rested as she lightly nibbled at some toast. Yang was beside her, currently in the middle of downing a large glass of what Ren could only assume was coffee strong enough to make your eyes burn. He had encountered the blonde enough times in the morning to know that she enjoyed her coffee blacker than a Grimm's hide, and that she was a special kind of zombie before she had it.

None of Weiss' usual perfection was present today. Her back was slumped, her normally impeccable ponytail loose and messy. She was staring despondently out a window across the room. A single untouched glass of water rested before her.

Her partner, though, was not quite so still. Ruby's head turned every which way in between spoonfuls of some sugary cereal, silver eyes observing every student as they lethargically filtered into the cafeteria, blinking away sleep as best they could. Ren watched the red-cloaked girl get more and more fidgety with each successive person who entered. He knew how she was with people. Seeing so many and knowing that she was going to have to talk to all of them sometime soon was probably making her nervous.

Her head swung back around, and her eyes caught his. He could see the nervousness burning behind them. In the previous months, Ren had only ever known Ruby to have a smile on her face, always energetic and full of a wild curiosity. She had occasionally fretted about a test or an assignment, but those moments were always short-lived. Ruby Rose was not a girl meant to have that look of worried fear etched on her face.

Ren fought the urge to frown. That wouldn't communicate a good message to her. He instead sent her a small smile, trying to convey as much comfort as he could through his eyes. She gave him a tired but thankful return smile, her shoulders relaxing a bit. Ruby nodded at him before turning back toward the doorway.

His friendship with Ruby was strange, he could admit. Most people that knew the two of them would find how close they had become surprising. Frankly, it had come out of nowhere for him too. Whenever he had found himself in class with her, he had braced himself for the worst. She was his friend, but he remembered the starry-eyed chatterbox that the younger girl had been their first year, sometimes even rivalling his partner. But their first interaction in the class, partnering up for a project, had caught him off guard, and he had realized that he had entirely misjudged Ruby's personality, something he rarely did. She was surprisingly intelligent and hard-working when she set her mind to something. Sure, she was childish sometimes, but her immaturity belied a strength and kindness that Ren had rarely seen before. She radiated warmth and hope, and it didn't take Ren long to see why she had been selected as RWBY's leader.

It had surprised him whenever he discovered that he had, in a way, actually come to rely on Ruby's passion and innocence. She was a counterbalance to the cynical voice in his head that tempered so much of his life. He found himself smiling more, talking more, breathing easier after being around her. She reminded him that as cruel and uncaring as the world could be, it could also be exciting and wonderful.

Unfortunately for her, these very qualities are what made those around Ruby look up to her for guidance, especially in this situation. It was a massive burden, and Ren wished he could do something to lighten it for her. He understood Ruby pretty well by this point, enough late night "study sessions" had that effect, and he knew how hard she would take it if things went south.

He was brought back from his musings as the girl in question stood, cloak fanning out behind her as she walked toward the front of the room. He glanced around, noting how full the space had gotten. This must have been most, if not all, of the students remaining at Beacon. Ren couldn't see any members of CRDL about, though that didn't really surprise him. He glanced back to RWBY just in time to see Yang raising her arm. His hands flew to his ears, just barely making it there before a loud _bang_ tore through the air, cutting off the buzzing of low conversations.

Weiss jumped and then glared at her teammate while Blake admonished the blonde, "Yang, that was _entirely_ unnecessary."

Yang shrugged, smirked and waved at Ruby. The indication was clear. _The stage is yours._

Ruby cleared her throat nervously. "G-Good morning, everyone." A small wave of mutters was her only reply. "I'm sorry for starting things so early," she started in a quiet voice. She _hated_ being in the spotlight this much. "But I figured we should get as much of a headstart on planning as we can." Nobody said a word, all eyes were trained on her. She fumbled, a blush starting to color her cheeks. She didn't really know where to go next. She had been hoping someone would've have said something by now.

Ren decided to intervene at that point. It wasn't much, but it was something he could do. "So what should our next step be?" he asked in a calm, clear voice. Ruby looked at him, eyes brimming over with gratitude.

"Yes, right, well," she exclaimed, voice more chipper than before. "First and foremost in the defense of Beacon. The Aura shield may be active, but we can't be sure how long it will last or exactly when reinforcements will arrive. I recommend a rotating cycle of sentries posted along the perimeter."

There were murmurs of agreement, and Ren saw quite a few heads nodding. He smiled to himself. Ruby probably wasn't even aware of how good a leader she actually was.

"Second," Ruby spoke over them, and the room quieted to listen, "is the matter of Vale."

"What do you mean?" someone asked, confused.

Ruby took a breath, preparing for the backlash of her next statement. "I believe that we should try and retake the city." There was a moment of silence, before angry and surprised outbursts erupted on all sides. To her credit, Ruby didn't shrink back from the onslaught at all, standing her ground, mouth a grim line.

Two more _bangs_ brought silence back as everyone hands instinctively jerked to their ears. Yang lowered her arms, glaring at the assembled mass. "Enough! Let her finish!" she growled. Her eyes just _dared_ someone to disagree with her. She looked back to Ruby, who nodded her thanks.

"I understand your reluctance; we ourselves are under siege. But this is what we do. We came here to be Huntsmen and Huntresses. To become the defenders of Remnant. How can we hope to achieve that if we sit idly by while our homes and families are under attack?" Nobody said a thing, but quite a few of the students looked ashamedly at their feet. "It is our responsibility to protect those that can't protect themselves, our own situation be _damned_." She said it with such force, such conviction, that Ren could literally _feel_ the shift in the atmosphere around him as everyone absorbed her words.

Gone were confused, angry, and scared looks that had adorned each person's face whenever they walked into the cafeteria a bit ago. They had been replaced by looks of hope and pride. They sat up a little straighter, eyes now burning with a fiery confidence they hadn't held before.

_It's ridiculous how good she is. She turned them around with just a few words._

"We're with you, Ruby," Pyrrha voiced from across the table. Several cries of "yeah" and "damn straight" followed her statement. "What's the plan?"

Ruby looked at her friend. "That's what I'm hoping we could hammer out." She took a seat, a small but genuine smile on her face. She had managed to win them over. The relief that coursed through her chest brought her spirits up significantly. "I'm not suggesting we rush the city en masse and try and kill everything in our way. We'd level half the buildings, and besides, we don't have the manpower for it."

"Sooooo…?" Jaune asked helpfully.

"When we interrogated Junior's men in Vale, they said that they were working for Roman Torchwick, and that somebody else was leading the attack on Beacon. I suggest that we go after Torchwick specifically, capture him, and get him to pull the forces out of the city."

"Would he really just let the city go like that?" Ren asked, unsure.

"If we assure him we'll let him go," Blake added, eyes narrowed in thought.

Ruby nodded. "I've dealt with Roman a few times. He's not a pushover, but he's not one to waste any opportunity to escape a situation he feels isn't in his favor. If we corner him, and he sees an out, he'll take it."

"Alright, then, we've figured out the what and how," Pyrrha said. She leaned forward, lacing her fingers together beneath her chin. "The next question is _who_?"

"It'll need to be a small group," Blake noted. "Too many people and we'll lose the advantage of stealth. I'd say four people at most."

"They'll have to be quick too, and able to deal with anything that gets in their way." Yang cracked her knuckles, already sensing where this seemed to be heading.

Ren saw Ruby chewing nervously on her lip, and realized with a start that team RWBY was essentially volunteering themselves. He looked to his leader, who seemed to have noticed the same thing. When their eyes met, an understanding passed between them, and then gave each other slight nods.

Jaune sighed, knowing he was probably going to regret this. "We'll do it," he announced. "Team JNPR will take down Roman."

Ruby looked to Jaune in surprise as Nora let out a triumphant woop. "But-"

The blond shook his head. "No buts. Team RWBY is needed here at Beacon. We'll get the mess in the city sorted out; you just focus on keeping this place standing."

The redhead opened her mouth to protest again, but was cut off by Weiss. "Ruby, let it go. They'll be fine. We have our own issues to worry about."

Ruby glanced at her partner, before back to Jaune, then back to her partner, and then to Ren. He met her eyes confidently, and she seemed to find the answer she was looking for there. She let out a puff of air.

"Yeah…alright. In that case…" she stood. "Team JNPR will depart at dawn tomorrow. Everyone else will remain here to defend the school and take care of the wounded. Everyone write your names and teams on this paper before you go." Ren wasn't sure where the sheet of loose leaf had come from, nor the pen with it. As far as he knew, she didn't actually have any pockets on her combat skirt. "I'll work up a schedule for guard duty and post it on the announcement board in the main hall. RWBY will take first shift. Everyone else, rest up and get anything prepared you might need to."

With that, the meeting ended, and the crowd dispersed. Some returned to their breakfast, others left to go check on injured teammates or catch up on sleep.

Jaune turned to his team. "So…guess we should probably do a bit of planning ourselves."

Ren chuckled. "Probably not a bad idea."

* * *

**A/N: **Okay, so, I am not gonna lie. This is definitely my favorite chapter so far. Far and away. I really liked writing everyone's parts in this, and BUMBLEBEE.

Jesus fuck, this was the first time I've ever written Bumblebee and I am super fucking excited about how it turned out. I certainly hope you guys agree

I also hope I made the Ren/Ruby thing a little easier to see/believe. If you're curious about Ren's backstory, that will be explained in the next chapter or two

Also, to those of you who read, reviewed, faved and alerted my oneshot, Eight to One, you are fucking awesome (also I'm sorry for hurting you)! That story got way more praise and reviews than I could have anticipated. Thank you guys so much! I'm really glad you enjoyed it, even if it hurt to do so.

For those of you who haven't read it, please feel free to. It's over on my page.

until next time!


	7. An Interval

**A/N: **Sorry this one's late guys, shit's been really hectic for the past few weeks. Forgive the length of this one, it's another transitiony chapter, but it's necessary for building. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

An Interval

A shiver traveled up Ruby's spine as she took in the sight before her.

From the base of the wall, stretching back all the way into the Emerald Forest, was a seething, swarming mass of Grimm. An undulating wave of darkness, broken only by bleached bone-white masks and smoldering crimson eyes. The force was massive, nothing they could ever hope to defeat if they were thrown into direct combat with it.

Ruby prayed the Aura shield held. At least until team JNPR could take back the city. That might give them at least a small chance of victory. That thought sent a whole new burst of nervousness coursing through her body. She didn't like the idea of her friends fighting their way through Vale outnumbered and without backup. They had lost too many people already, she really didn't want to see her friends' names added to that list.

Of course, she mused, they didn't really have much choice. Jaune had been right whenever he said that RWBY was needed here. She wasn't trying to be arrogant, but the fact of the matter was that the remaining fighters seemed to have wordlessly chosen her as their leader. With the exclusion of CRDL, everyone had begun to look to her for orders. If she left now, there was no telling what would become of them should their defenses fail.

On top of that, Ruby wasn't entirely sure her team would be fit for a mission like that right now. She turned to regard her partner staring despondently across the clearing below them. Weiss had been incredibly withdrawn since the battle the previous day. Ruby couldn't exactly blame her. She was aware that Port and Weiss had become rather close after their one talk first year. The heiress had once confided in Ruby that despite the man's ridiculous bravado, he was the first person she turned to outside of her team whenever she needed advice with something. She had said that Port sort of felt like the father she had never truly had. Supportive and caring.

Ruby knew she had to talk to her partner; she was clearly not handling the professor's death well.

"Weiss," she began hesitantly. The pale girl didn't respond. "Weiss," she repeated, a bit more strongly. Still no reaction. "Weiss-"

"What, Ruby?" her partner asked tersely. "I'm _right here_, do you really not think I can hear you?"

"Well you weren't responding and-"

"So it didn't occur to you that maybe I don't _want_ to talk?"

"No, I figured that."

Weiss floundered for a moment, tripped up. Ruby always had a habit of being unpredictable. "Well then why-"

"Because you _need_ to talk, Weiss," she cut her off. "We can all see how Professor Port's death is affecting you, but you won't talk to anyone about it. You're doing that thing that you always tell Blake not to do, keeping it all in by yourself. We're your teammates." She took a step forward and laid a hand on Weiss' shoulder. "I'm your partner. It's what I'm here for."

Weiss glared at her, but Ruby only smiled in return. The red-cloaked girl sat down cross-legged atop the wall. She looked up into her partner's eyes and authoritatively pointed to the space beside her. "Now, talk."

Weiss narrowed her eyes at Ruby, before glancing at the spot beside her, chewing her lip. She looked back to the silver eyes watching her expectantly, and with so much warmth, and she sighed. She lowered herself down beside the younger girl, stretching her legs out in front of her so that her heels just crossed over the edge of the stone, inches away from the Aura shield.

"I don't even know what you want me to say," she stated, sweeping her eyes over the invasion force beneath them to avoid looking at Ruby's wide smile.

"Whatever you want, really."

"Well then how about this is pointless?" Ruby opened her mouth to protest, but Weiss talked over her. "Ruby, we're in the middle of a fight for our lives! If even the slightest thing goes wrong, we could all die. You're the one leading these people now; if you don't focus every bit of your concentration on this then everyone-" her sentence ended abruptly as she saw Ruby's face fall. Guilt twisted her gut. She hadn't meant to be so harsh.

The brunette turned away from her, out toward the Emerald Forest. There was a heavy silence between the two for a minute before Ruby spoke quietly, "I'm well aware of how much is riding on me, Weiss. I know that if things go wrong, I'm going to be the one to blame. Even already, maybe if I had acted a little faster or done things differently, those eleven students would still be alive. Maybe Port wouldn't be dead."

"That isn't what I-"

"But, you know," Ruby continued, her head swiveling back around. Her eyes met Weiss' and the heiress felt like squirming under the intensity and determination that shined in her silver irises. "What kind of leader would I be if I completely ignored my partner when she needed me the most?"

It was such a simple statement, and she said it like it had the easiest answer in the world. And Weiss knew that, to Ruby, it did. No matter how harsh a situation, if a leader couldn't look after her followers, then she wasn't suited for leadership in the first place. She had seen it time and again in how Ruby acted in any sort of crises. Somehow she always managed to juggle both her teammates' welfares and the battle at the same time.

"I know what it's like to lose someone, Weiss. Especially someone you look up to and confide in. I understand the void it leaves behind." Weiss winced at those words, feeling the very same emptiness yawning in her chest. "I also understand that keeping it all pent up inside of you doesn't do you any favors." A pang went through her as she heard the sadness in Ruby's voice.

"Your mother..."

Ruby shook her head. "Doesn't matter. What matters is you letting it out, not bottling it up. We've got another hour until our shift ends, and Yang and Blake are guarding the other side of the school. We won't be interrupted, and I promise that nothing you say will go beyond us."

Weiss was silent for a couple minutes, before she whispered in a small voice, "Professor Port was...he was always there for me. Everytime I needed advice about something. Anytime I just needed someone to talk to, or vent to, he was there. Whenever I couldn't go to any of you, he would sit with me and listen and offer advice. He would always make time for me." She took a deep, stuttering breath, feeling tears prick at her eyes. "Did you know he sought me out after I lost that match against Sun in the quarter finals of the tournament last year? He knew I'd beat myself up, tear myself down.

He found me and told me I was being ludicrous. That I was one of the finest Huntresses-in-training he had ever had the great fortune to train." She sniffed before continuing in a watery voice. "Told me that I shouldn't be ashamed, that it was a splendid match and that I should use it as an opportunity to accept my flaws and improve myself. That's what he always told me to do. Take the situation, learn from it, and improve from it." Her voice cracked. "But how am I supposed to improve from this?" And the dam broke. The encroaching sadness that had plagued her since Port's death rushed to the surface, and Weiss found herself sobbing. She hid her face in her hands as salty tears tracked down her cheeks.

She heard movement beside her, and was surprised to find her head being pulled down and forward, into something soft and warm. Small but strong arms wrapped around her back, holding her tightly. Weiss didn't say a word, accepting the gesture of comfort. She balled fistfuls of Ruby's shirt in her hands, pouring out her sorrow into her partner's neck. They stayed like that until the end of their shift, Ruby remaining miraculously quiet but for a few soft murmurs of comfort, something for which Weiss was eternally grateful.

* * *

"There," Ruby said, pinning the sheet of paper to the corkboard. She turned to face the room full of people behind her. "The schedule's up. Everyone needs to memorize it and be ready to go whenever it's time for their assigned turn. Teams STAR and RUNE, you've got the next shift, so get prepped and then head out. Keep your eyes peeled and your weapons ready." She nodded at them all, and the group dispersed. The two teams that had been scheduled finished checking their weapons, exchanged brief greetings and introductions, then left to patrol.

Ruby let out a small breath. That was one thing taken care of, at least. She turned to look at her partner, who had been hovering behind her back in an attempt to keep anyone from noticing she had been crying. "C'mon, Weiss, let's go get some food."

The heiress shook her head. "Thank you, but I think I'm just going to go lay down for a while. I'm not feeling particularly hungry at the moment, anyway." She nervously crossed her arms.

Ruby offered her a smile. "Alright, go get some sleep. I'll bring you some food later."

Weiss looked up in surprise. "Ruby, you don't have to-"

"Nope, hush. I'm bringing you food later. Now go rest." Her eyes softened. "Leader's orders."

Weiss looked like she was going to protest for a moment, but then her shoulders slumped with exhaustion. She nodded tiredly. "Fine. I'll see you later."

"Sleep well," Ruby chirped as the white-haired girl exited the entrance hall.

"That might not work out for her as well as she hopes," a voice stated from Ruby's right, and she turned to find Blake at her side, watching Weiss's retreating form.

She blinked at her faunus teammate. "Why's that?" Ruby frowned. "And where's Yang?"

Blake spun around and headed for the cafeteria, Ruby following close behind. "Funnily enough, the answers to both of those questions are related."

Ruby gave her a confused look before it clicked, and she let loose a groan. "Yang went back to the room for a nap too, didn't she?"

Blake nodded with a small smirk as she swiped a small salad from the buffet. _Thank god the kitchen staff didn't go to the conference too. We'd starve to death before the Grimm got us._ "She didn't sleep too well last night, and the coffee's wearing off."

"We're gonna have to check on them in a bit to make sure they haven't killed each other." Ruby selected a bowl of chicken noodle soup. She wasn't much in the mood for cookies at the moment, and she couldn't risk the sugar crash anyway.

"I'm hoping they're gonna be too tired for that."

"With any luck, Yang will already be asleep by the time she gets there."

"Yeah, but noticed anything particular about our luck as of late?"

Ruby sighed. "Yes…yes I have." She pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I'm sure they'll be fine, Ruby," Blake reassured her leader.

"Who will be fine?" Jaune asked, sliding into the seat across from Blake. Pyrrha took the spot beside him, in front of Ruby.

"Weiss and Yang," Ruby answered, blowing on spoonful of soup. "They both went back to the room to sleep."

"Oh god," Jaune dropped his fork in horror. "And you left them _alone_? I thought we were trying to protect Beacon, not destroy it!"

"They're both really tired so maybe they'll just...go to sleep?" it sounded weak, even to Ruby.

"You know as well as we do that that is a very slim possibility," Ren commented, taking his own seat next to Pyrrha, Nora bouncing happily along behind him. Ruby groaned and slumped. Ren smirked, deciding to throw her a bone. "Maybe we'll see a miracle today though." Ruby looked up and gave him a dazzling smile, sending his eyes scurrying downward to his tray. His didn't know why Ruby seemed to have that affect on him. He was terrible at holding her gaze.

"So how are your preparations going?" Blake asked.

"_They'd_ be going a whole lot better if we had any idea where _we_ were going," Jaune muttered.

"What Jaune means," Pyrrha interjected, shooting the blond a look that made him blush and look away ashamedly, "is that we're pretty much as ready as we can be without knowing exactly where Roman's going to be."

Ruby pondered for a moment. "Did we hear anything about where he was when we were in Vale, Blake?"

The faunus' brow scrunched in thought. "No," she said slowly, "I do not believe we did." She looked back at Pyrrha. "However, I would search the biggest, most central buildings you can find. Possibly a high-end hotel or something similar. He'd want to stay in a position where he wasn't too far from everything." Pyrrha hummed an agreement.

"Why hotels?" Jaune asked.

"Roman's got a flair to him. He's not quite flashy, but he also wouldn't say no to the fanciest accommodations he could find."

"Ah. Right, well. We'll have to look over the map of Vale then. Thanks, guys."

"No problem," Ruby smiled. "Just make sure you take him out and get back here safe and sound alright? I don't want any of you guys getting hurt." She subtly shot Ren a look out of the corner of her eye. Not subtly enough though. Her teammate caught it, and adding it to the information she had gathered the previous day, put two and two together.

So when team JNPR turned to each other, leaving the present half of team RWBY to themselves, Blake quietly leaned over and whispered in a voice so slight only Ruby could possibly have heard it, "So you and Ren, eh?"

It had been unfortunate timing on her part, as Ruby was mid-drink. Milk spewed from her mouth in a fine spray as her eyes widened. Pyrrha, to her credit, managed to get her platter in between the cloud of projectile dairy and herself, blocking most of it. Ruby start coughing roughly, trying to clear her windpipe.

"I-I'm sorry," she choked out to team JNPR before rounding on Blake. _"What?!"_ she hissed.

"You don't do a very good job of hiding it."

"Hiding _what_?"

"Yang was right, you _do_ have a crush." Ruby groaned, her head hitting the table with a solid _thump_.

"Not you, too."

"I have to say though," Blake continued in a low voice as if she hadn't heard Ruby, "did not expect it to be Ren."

"Can we stop this now?" she asked in a small voice. "Please?"

Blake shrugged. "Sure."

Ruby sighed in relief. "Thank you."

"And don't worry," Blake said with a wink that made Ruby think that she had been spending too much time around her sister, "I won't tell anyone else."

Ruby let loose another sound of dismay, forehead making its way back to the wooden surface as Blake laughed lightly beside her.

It felt almost normal, like it was just any other day.

If Ruby had any idea what was coming, she would realize just how wrong she was.

* * *

**A/N:** So there you have it guys. Again, sorry for the length, and if it seems rushed at all. I hope you guys enjoyed this one! I'm really trying to keep everyone true to their characters

I apologize again for it's lateness. This past week and a half has been busy as fuck and frustrating and hectic. I got in a car accident and shit so I've had to deal with that...woooooo

Anyway, I love you all. Please review, let me know what you think!


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